NKs'l'ING-SERlES i)K Ultlllsll HIHI)-;. 175 



the Coutiueut. Damp pastures, baie tallows, and luoorlauus are its 

 favourite Iiauuts, where insects, worms, and slugs are plentiful. The 

 nest, a slight depression in the soil, sometimes i^cratehed out by the 

 birds themselves, is lined with a few bits of dead rush or dry grass. 

 The eggs, usually four in number, arc subject to variation in eolonr, 

 but are commonly brownish- but!', blotched and s[)otted with blackish- 

 brown. 



In March, A\)n[ and May vast numbers of eggs are collected and 

 are greatly appreciated for the table. 



Yorkshire, May. 



Presented bij Lord H^ulsiiKjham. 



No. 104. RED-NECKED PHALAROPE. 



(Phalaropus hj perboreiis). 



This elegant little Wader is a circumpolar species breeding in the 

 north of Europe, Asia, and America, and migrating southward in the 

 autumn. A few pairs still uest regularly in the Shcthmds, Orkneys, 

 and Outer Hebrides, and a small breeding-colony has recently been 

 discovered in Ireland. Its nest, a small deep hollow in a tuft of grass, 

 is usually situated in the vicinity of water. The four eggs are yellowish- 

 bulf or pale olive, blotched and spotted with blackish-brown, reddish- 

 brown, and grey. 



The female is both larger and more brightly coloured than the male, 

 and the latter usually undertakes the duties of incubation. After the 

 autumn moult the cheeks, ueck, and uuderparts become white. 



Hebrides, June. 



Presented by Colunel L. H. Irby ^y L'aptuin S. G. Reid. 



No. 105. AVOCET. (Recurvirostra avocetta.) 



Formerly a regular summer visitor to England, breeding in con- 

 siderable numbers ou the shores of the eastern counties from the 

 Humber to Sussex. Reclamation of fen-land and constant persecution 

 have gradually caused it to forsake our coast and it probably ceased 

 to uest in 18.34. Though small parties still arrive in spring, and 

 occasionally in autumn, they are never allowed to breed. The eggs 

 are laid in May, in a slight depression among scanty herbage, sand, 

 or dry mud. 



Europe, May. 



Presented liy J. Stares i)' E. V. Eitrle, li.tijrs. 



