8o8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 



houi-s after the snow had melted, the wood-anemone was in flower, and 

 twenty-four hours afterwards the yellow flowers of the mai-sh marigold 

 opened. In a short time the country was like aii English garden inin 

 wild. On the Arctic Circle wild onions, wild rhubarb, pansics, Jacob's- 

 ladder, pui-ple anemones, dwarf roses, and a huncUxd other flowei's made 

 the country quite gay ; wliilst on the tundi'as wild fniit of various kinds — 

 crowben'y, cranbeny, cloudberry, Arctic strawberiy — were blended with 

 reindeer moss and other lichens, together with the most characteristic 

 of Alpine flora. 



" Although the first rash of migratory birds across the Ai-ctic Circle 

 was almost bewildering, evei-y piece of open water, and every patch of 

 bare gi-ound swarm mg with them, a new species, on an average, aiTiving 

 eveiy two hom-s for several days, the period of migi-ation lasted more 

 than a month. Veiy little migration was observable mitil about the 

 22nd of May, although a few stragglers amved earUer, but during the 

 next fortnight the migration was prodigious. In addition to enormous 

 numbers of Passerine (perching) birds, coimtless flocks of Geese, Swans, 

 and Ducks anived, together with a great many Gulls and Terns and 

 birds of prey. During the next fortnight, from the 5th to the 19th 

 June, fresh species of Passerine birds continued to arrive, and the main 

 migration of the species belonging to the family Vhdradriidu: (Plovers, 

 &c.), took place. The Common and Pin-tailed Snipes were the first to 

 arrive, in company with the Australian Golden Plover on tlio 5th. The 

 Wood Sandpiper and Temminck's Stint amved on the 6th. The Golden 

 Plover arrived on the 7th, and the Ringed Plover with the Terek Sand- 

 piper (Australian species) on the 8th. The Ruff and tlie Dottrel arrived 

 on the 9th, and the Great Snipe on the 11th, and the Common Sandpiper 

 (Australian) on the 12th. On the 15tli the Green Sandpiper, the Red- 

 necked Phalarope, and a solitary Curlew Sandpiper (Australian) aiTived. 

 Although migration continued imtil the end of the month, dming which 

 many new species of Passerine anived, I did not ;idd a new species of 

 Charadriine bird to my list until wc reached the tiuidra beyond the 

 limit of forest growth." 



621. — LiMosA Nov^ ZEAL.\NDi.s;, Gray. — (521) 

 L. urupyyiaJis, Gould. 



BARRED-RUM PED GOD WIT. 



Figure, — Gould : Birds of .Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 2g. 



Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. ,\xiv., p. 377. 



Previous Description oj Eggs. — .Middendorff : Sibir, Reise, V6g., pi. 

 19, fig. 5 (1S51). 



(leagrti iiJiiid! Diatriliiitioit. — -Australia in general, and Tasmania; 

 also New Zealand, other Oceanic localities, and the Malayan Archi- 

 pelago, migrating through China ,ind Japan to the regions of Eastern 

 Siberia and Alivska. 



