602 PECTORAL SANDPIPER.
TRINGA PECTORALIS, PECTORAL SANDPIPER, Ch Bonaparte, Synopsis of Birds of
the United States, p. 318.
PECTORAL SANDPIPER, TRINGA PECTORALIS, Ch. Bonaparte, Amer. Omith. vol. ivpp.
43. pi. 23. fig. 2—Nuttall, Manual, vol. ii. p. 111.
Adult Male in Summer. Plate CCXCIV. Fig. 1.
Bill rather longer than the head, slender, subcylindrical, straight,
flexible, compressed at the base, the point rather depressed and obtuse.
Upper mandible with the dorsal line straight, slightly decurved towards
the end, the ridge convex, towards the end a little flattened, at the point
convex, the sides sloping, the edges rather blunt and soft. Nasal groove
extending to near the tip; nostrils basal, linear, pervious. Lower mandible
with the angle long and very narrow, the dorsal line straight, the
sides nearly erect, with a long narrow groove, the tip a little broader but
tapering.
Head of moderate size, oblong, compressed. Eyes rather large. Neck
of moderate length. Body rather slender. Feet of moderate length, slender
; tibia bare for a considerable length ; tarsus compressed, anteriorly
and posteriorly with numerous small scutella; hind toe very small; the
rest rather long, slender, the fourth slightly longer than the second, the
third longest, all free, scutellate above, flat beneath, slightly marginate;
claws rather small, slightly arched, compressed, acute, that of third toe
much larger, with the inner edge dilated.
Plumage very soft, blended beneath, slightly distinct above. Wings
long and pointed ; primaries tapering, obtuse, the first longest, the second
considerably shorter, the rest regularly graduated; outer secondaries short,
obliquely rounded, the inner elongated and tapering. Tail of twelve
feathers, rather short, nearly even, but with the middle feathers much
longer and pointed, the rest rounded.
Bill dull olive-green, dusky towards the point. Iris hazel. Feet dull
.yellowish-green; claws dusky. Upper part of the head reddish-brown,
the central part of each feather brownish-black ; a faint whitish line from
the bill to a little beyond the eye; lores dusky ; sides of the head and anterior
and lateral parts of the neck, with a portion of the breast, light
brownish-grey, marked with dark brown lines; chin and the rest of the
lower parts white. The feathers on the upper parts are brownish-black,
edged with reddish-brown, those on the wings lighter, primary quills
dusky ; the outer secondaries tinged with grey, the inner like the feathers
PECTORAL SANDPIPER. 603
of the back. Tail-feathers light brownish-grey, slightly margined and
tipped with white, the two central dark like the back.
Length to end of tail 9^ inches, to end of wings Q\ ; to end of
claws 10^; extent of wings 18; wing from flexure 5\§; tail 2, ft ; bill
along the ridge 1£, along the edge of lower mandible lft ; bare part of
tibia | J , tarsus 1 middle toe its claw ft. Weight 6 oz.
Adult Female in summer. Plate CCXCIV. Fig. 2 .
The Female, which is a little larger, is similar to the male.