254 
Mr. J. E. Harting on rare 
Swainson, it frequents the shallow lakes, feeding on insects 
and small freshwater Crustacea. In Oregon, California, and 
Texas it is equally numerous, as was ascertained hy the U. S. 
Exploring Expedition under Peale and others. I have re¬ 
ceived several specimens of this bird from Mexico in full sum - 
mer plumage; and Professor Spencer Baird has recorded its 
occurrence in Elorida. Occasionally, says Mr. Cassin (< !.c .), 
it is noticed on the coast of the Atlantic, sparingly north of 
New Jersey, but becoming more numerous southwardly. 
Audubon, in his f Birds of America 9 {l. c.), has given an ex¬ 
tremely interesting account, too long to be quoted here, of 
the breeding-habits of this bird as observed by himself be¬ 
tween Henderson and Vincennes, in the State of Indiana; and 
this account is republished in his * Ornithological Biography 9 
(/. c.) . Although R. americana has been met with in some 
parts of Central America, e.g. in Guatemala, where, if I mis¬ 
take not, Mr. Salvin procured specimens*; it would appear to 
be somewhat rare there, and probably does not travel much 
further south. I know of no instance of its occurrence in 
any part of South America, although the Black-winged Stilt, 
Himantopus nigricollis, a bird of similar habits and affecting 
similar haunts, is found quite as far north and travels down to 
Brazil. The latter bird has been met with in Jamaica (Gosse) 
and the Galapagos Islands (Habel); but the former seems to 
be confined entirely to the continent of North America. 
Giraud, in his account of the birds of Long Island, p. 269, 
says, “ the habits of this bird are very similar to those of the 
Stilt, to which in form it has some resemblance. It is less 
frequent with us than the latter, and is not generally known 
to our gunners. It frequents the shallow pools in the salt 
marshes, and, like the Stilt, is sometimes seen wading breast- 
deep in pursuit of its favourite fare. A few breed at Egg 
Harbour, where they are called 4f Blue-stocking,” their legs 
being of that colour. Its nest is built among the thick tufts 
of grass, usually near some favourite pool, making use of 
similar materials in its construction as the Stilt. The number 
* [ Cy. Salvin, Ibis, 1865, p. 192, et 1867, p. 198, where it is stated that 
this species was seen in some numbers at Chiapam on the Pacific coast of 
Guatemala.— Ed. ] 
