SEMIPALMATED PLOVER 255 



tinguished by its lighter color, and by the difference in the 

 black collar, which in the Piping Plover does not cross the 

 breast. 



Semipalmated Plover; Rixg-xeck. JEgialitis semi- 



palmata 



6.75. Bill .50 



Ad. — Forehead white ; forward part of crown, stripe under 

 each eye and over bill black; throat and narrow ring around neck 

 white ; band across breast and neck black • rest of upper parts 

 grayish-brown ; rest of under parts white ; legs yellow ; base of 

 bill orange ; tip black. 



The Semipalmated Plover, or Ring-neck, is a common 

 migrant along the sea-coast in May, and again from the 

 middle of July to October. 



Ring-necks frequent the 



beaches and mud-flats exposed 



at low tide. They are not, as a 



rule shy, and if startled, fly only 



a short distance, uttering as they 



rise a sweet call, chee-icee, as 



characteristic of the mud-flats 



and beaches as the hew, hew, 



hew, hew of the Yellow-legs is 



of the grassy marshes. They 



are often associated with the 



,, , . , Fig. 75. Semipalmated Plover 



smaller sandpipers known as 



" Peep " (see p. 267), or with their larger relative the 



Black-bellied Plover ; their bobbing readily distinguishes 



them from the Peep. They are much commoner than the 



Piping Plover, and are a darker shade of brown on the 



back, the color of wet rather than of dry sand. The 



blach ring encircles the breast, while in the Piping 



Plover the black bands from each side of the breast do 



not meet. 



