. Report upon natural history collections made in Alaska between the years 1877 and 1881 . .When congregated about their feeding places they united into flocks of from ten into fifty, but singlebirds were frequently flushed from grassy spots. Their motions on the wing are very similar tothose of the latter, and they were rarely shy. On October 1,1880, they were found scattered singlyover the marsh, and arose 30 to 40 yards in advance, and made off with a twisting flight, utteringat the same time a short, soft, metallic ^foep, .pteep, and, pursuing an erratic, circuitous flightfor a time, they
. Report upon natural history collections made in Alaska between the years 1877 and 1881 . .When congregated about their feeding places they united into flocks of from ten into fifty, but singlebirds were frequently flushed from grassy spots. Their motions on the wing are very similar tothose of the latter, and they were rarely shy. On October 1,1880, they were found scattered singlyover the marsh, and arose 30 to 40 yards in advance, and made off with a twisting flight, utteringat the same time a short, soft, metallic ^foep, .pteep, and, pursuing an erratic, circuitous flightfor a time, they generally returned and settled near the spot whence they started. A single bird taken at Port Clarence, Bering Straits, September 9, by Bean, is the only instanceof its occurrence there. On the Commander Islands it occurs during the migrations. I do notthink the bird breeds on the American side. On the north shore of Siberia, near North Cape, we found these birds very common, scatteredover damp flats near the coast, the Ist of August, 1881. The ground was covered with Plate —I p QW J I—I [fi 5x 0 ■N 0 s. BIRDS. 107 reindeer tracks, and among these the Sharp-tailed Snipe were seen seeking their food. They werevery iinsuspicious, and allowed us to pass close to them, or circled close about us. From theirmovements, and other circumstances, I judged that this district formed part of their breedinggrounds, whence they reach the neighboring coast of Alaska in fall. They usually make their first appearance on the shore of Norton Sound the last of August,and in a few days become very common. They sometimes remain up to the 12th of October, andI have seen them searching for food along the tide-line when the ground was covered with 2inches of snow. When feeding along the edges of the tide-creeks they may almost be knockedover with a paddle, and when a flock is fired into it returns again and again. Its exact range isstill undetermined, but it is known to cover the e
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, booksubjectbirds, booksubjectzoology, bookyear18
