. Feathered game of the Northeast . or ceasing his endless dance. He is a brilliant conversationalist, (a traitcommon to most of his family), and is readyand willing to prove it, evidently feeling that hemust make amends for his small size by beingthe noisiest member of his tribe. If suddenlydriven to flight he makes the air resound withhis sharp Peet-Weet!—^^Peet-Weet! andwhen he has alighted again he quavers out along, tremulous ^ W-e-e-e-e-t! The Spotted Sandpiper arrives in New Eng-land from his winter quarters in the SouthernStates, Mexico, or the Tropics, in May and setsup housekeeping s
. Feathered game of the Northeast . or ceasing his endless dance. He is a brilliant conversationalist, (a traitcommon to most of his family), and is readyand willing to prove it, evidently feeling that hemust make amends for his small size by beingthe noisiest member of his tribe. If suddenlydriven to flight he makes the air resound withhis sharp Peet-Weet!—^^Peet-Weet! andwhen he has alighted again he quavers out along, tremulous ^ W-e-e-e-e-t! The Spotted Sandpiper arrives in New Eng-land from his winter quarters in the SouthernStates, Mexico, or the Tropics, in May and setsup housekeeping soon after. He seems moreaccustomed to civilization than any other ofthe shorebirds and fears less the neighborhoodof man. Probably the reason lies in the factthat the gunner seldom troubles him becauseof his small size and also because, since they donot gather into flocks as do the other sandpip-ers and smaller shorebirds, he can get but oneat a shot, thus he thinks it a small return forhis outlay of ammunition. With this freedom. THE SPOTTED SANDPIPER 195 from pursuit and the semi-protection thus af-forded, they often nest near the farmhouse, inthe orchards, and near the highways where noother of their kind would ever think of makingits home. Their nests are made in almost anyspot near water, be it sea, lake, pond or moun-tain brook, and a very simple affair is this hum-ble home—a mere hollow on the ground linedwith soft dead grass. This usually containsfour eggs of a dull clay color, splashed with ir-regular dark spots. If the bird is flushed fromthe nest she commonly flies off in silence, mak-ing no show of annoyance, in marked contrastto her usual noisy mood, and if surprised withher young family plays all the tricks and wilesknown to other birds and used in a like situa-tion. Strolling one August day on the banks of acreek much frequented by these birds I cameupon a Spotted Piper which seemed greatly dis-tressed at my presence. The cause was not farto seek. Out on a po
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Keywords: ., boo, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectgameandgamebirds
