NAM Verbeek 1966 Calidris melanotos (3). Very active either. It is possible that the windy cold weather was more conducive to display, but it is more likely that the almost complete absence of females so far is the reason for the apparent passive behavior of the males. 25 June No birds seen on afternoon trip. This area North and N.E. of Pitelka's Census Plot is rather low and marsh, with lots of pools especially in the W and N. In spite of these ideal conditions there were no Peetraals at all. 26 June Noticed a group of five males standing in the meadow behind AACS. 28 June Saw a group of 37 peetraals at 22:00 in the meadow SE. of Imikipuke lake. They were spread out over a distance of some 30 m. Some birds fed but most of them just stood facing the wind. When a Black phase Parasitic Jaeger flew over, the whole flock took off. 29 June. Saw several small groups of 5,6 birds to day. One such group fed together across the road from AACS. This morning there was some shooting activity in Holmes Morass, and on one occasion there, I saw a male and female fly together. The group at AACS consisted of 3 males and 2 females. 30 June There was a great deal of activity on Pitelka's plot this morning, as small flocks, from 2 to 30 birds, kept flying back and forth. They feed in the marsh and use the Bridge to rest. I only saw two females for sure. There was no sexual chasing or any display-ing among the males 3 July There was only 1 Peetral (perhaps) at the N end and 3 birds of the census plot at the S. end. This is quite inconsistent with the 30 June