183 



TRINGA. SANDPIPER. 



The Sandpipers are birds of small size, the largest not 

 exceeding the Golden Plover, and resemble in form the 

 Sanderlings, Phalaropes, Snipes, and other genera of the 

 same family, having the body rather full and ovate, the neck 

 of moderate length, the head rather small, compressed, and 

 anteriorly convex. 



Bill not much longer than the head, nearly straight, 

 slender, soft and somewhat flexible ; upper mandible with 

 the dorsal outline straight, the ridge narrow, but flattened 

 towards the end, the tip slightly enlarged, obtuse, and a little 

 exceeding that of the lower, the nasal groove extending 

 nearly to the end and filled by a concave bare membrane ; 

 lower mandible with the angle very long and narrow, the 

 sides grooved, the tip a little enlarged and obtuse. Tongue 

 soft at the base, very long, slender, trigonal, channelled above, 

 pointed. Upper mandible within concave, with a groove on 

 each side, and a central double row of reversed pointed 

 papilla? ; lower deeply concave. Fauces extremely small. 

 (Esophagus narrow, without dilatation ; proventriculus small, 

 its glands oblong; gizzard very large and powerful, its 

 muscles extremely firm ; its cuticular lining rugous ; intes- 

 tine long ; coeca moderate, cylindrical. 



Nostrils small, linear, pervious, basal, close to the margin. 

 Eyes rather small ; both eyelids densely feathered. Aperture 

 of ear rather large, roundish. The feet are of moderate 

 length, and very slender ; the tibia long, and bare above the 

 joint ; tarsus of ordinary length, anteriorly covered with 

 numerous narrow scutella ; toes small ; first very small and 

 elevated ; second a little shorter than fourth, third not much 

 longer ; all with numerous scutella above, laterally margi- 



