42(3 (;KALLAiORtS. 



FAMILY I. 



Charaduiid.e.* TJie Plovers. 



Gen. Charac— Bill short, with the base of the culmen rather depressed and 

 weak and the apical part strong and swollen ; the nostrils placed in a deep 

 longitudinal groove of various length ; the tarsi lengthened; the hind toe 

 totally wanting, or small and elevated. 



The habits of the Charadriidae vary. Some^ which 

 approach in structure the Gallinaceous birds, are 

 attached to the land, while other families live on 

 the sea-coast, or in places immediately contiguous 

 to water, obtaining their food, in a great measure, 

 from that element. The more terrestrial species, 

 on the contrary, reside in the interior of the country, 

 preferring open grounds and plains; whilst some of 

 them even inhabit the arid sands of the desert. A 

 great proportion of this family feed at twilight, or 

 during the night, and have the eyes large, which is 

 necessarily attended with a corresponding expansion 

 of the socket, giving the head a bulky appearance ; 

 and, indeed, this is one of their characteristic 

 features. Their flight is in general strong and 

 rapid, the wings being long, and usually brought to 

 a point. Most of them moult twice in the year, 

 undergoing a change of plumage immediately before 

 the season of pairing. 



This family includes the Thick-knees, the Coursers, 

 the Pratincoles, the True Plovers, the Oyster- 

 catchers, and the Turnstones. 



* Xapa^pwQ, charadrios, tlie name of a bird, so called from its 

 living in clefts or gullies, ^^apw'^pat, charadrai. 



