File:Report upon natural history collections made in Alaska between the years 1877 and 1881 (1887) (14565586139).jpg

Identifier: reportuponnatura00nels (find matches)
Title: Report upon natural history collections made in Alaska between the years 1877 and 1881
Year: 1887 (1880s)
Authors: Nelson, Edward William, 1855-1934 Henshaw, Henry W. (Henry Wetherbee), 1850-1930 True, Frederick William, 1858-1914 Bean, Tarleton H. (Tarleton Hoffman), 1846-1916 Edwards, William H. (William Henry), 1822-1909
Subjects: Zoology -- Alaska Birds -- Alaska Bibliography
Publisher: Washington, Govt. Print. Off
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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ote; a moment laterand, gun in hand, I stood outside the tent. The open flat extended away on all sides, with appar-ently not a living creature near. Once again the note was repeated close by, and a glance revealedits author. Standing in the thin grasses 10 or 15 yards from me, with its throat inflated untilit was as large as the rest of the bird, was a male -4.. maculata. The succeediug days afforded op-portunity to observe the bird as it uttered its singular notes under a variety of situations and atvarious hours of the day or during the light Arctic night. The note is deep, hollow, and resonant,but at the same time liquid and musical, and may be represented by a repetition of the syllablestoOii, too-u, lOu-ii, to6-A, too-A, too-u, tdo-il, tOu-u. Before the bird utters these notes it fills itsajsophagus with air to such an extent that the breast and throat is inflated to twice or more itsnatural size, and the great air-sac thus formed gives the peculiar resonant quality to the note.
Text Appearing After Image:
BIRDS. 109 The skiu of the throat aud breast becomes very flabby and loose at this season, and its iuuersurface is covered with small globular masses of fat. When not inflated, the skiu loaded with thisextra weight aud with a slight serous sufiusiou which is present hangs dowu in a pendulous flapor fold exactly like a dewlap, about an inch and a half wide. The ajsophagus is very loose audbecomes remarkably soft and distensible, but is easily ruptured in this state, as I found by dissec-tion. In the plate accompanying this report the extent aud character of this inflation, unique atleast among American waders, is shown. The bird may frequently be seen running along theground close to the female, its enormous sac inflated, and its head drawn back aud the bill pointingdirectly forward, or, filled with spring-time vigor, the bird flits with slow but energetic wing-strokesclose along the ground, its bead raised high over the shoulders and the tail haugiug almost directlydown. As it thus fl

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