SANDERLING PLOVER. 369 



the flux and reflux of the surf, eagerly picking up its food from the sand, 

 amid the roar of the ocean. It flies in numerous flocks, keeping a low 

 meandering course along the ridges of the tumbling surf. On alighting, 

 the whole scatter about after the receding wave, busily picking up those 

 minute bivalves already described. As the succeeding wave returns, it 

 bears the whole of them before it in one crowded line ; then is the mo- 

 ment seized by the experienced gunner to sweep them in flank, with his 

 destructive shot. The flying survivors, after a few aerial meanders, 

 again alight, and pursue their usual avocation, as busily and unconcern- 

 edly as before. These birds are most numerous on extensive sandy 

 beaches in front of the ocean. Among rocks, marshes, or stones covered 

 with sea-weed, they seldom make their appearance. 



The Sanderling is eight inches long, and fourteen inches in extent ; 

 the bill is black, an inch and a quarter in length, slender, straight, fluted 

 along the upper mandible, and exactly formed like that of the Sand- 

 piper ; the head, neck above, back, scapulars and tertials, are gray white ; 

 the shafts blackish, and the webs tinged with brownish ash ; shoulder of 

 the wing black ; greater coverts broadly tipped with white ; quills black, 

 crossed with a transverse band of white ; the tail extends a little beyond 

 the wings, and is of a grayish ash color, edged with white, the two mid- 

 dle feathers being about half an inch longer than the others ; eye dark 

 hazel.; whole lower parts of the plumage pure white ; legs, and naked 

 part of the thighs, black ; feet three-toed, each divided to its origin, 

 and bordered with a narrow membrane. 



Such are the most common markings of this bird, both of males and 

 females, particularly during the winter ; but many others occur among 

 them, early in the autumn, thickly marked or spotted with black on the 

 crown, back, scapulars and tertials, so as to appear much mottled, hav- 

 ing as much black as white on those parts. In many of these I have 

 observed the plain gray plumage coming out about the middle of Octo- 

 ber ; so that, perhaps, the gray may be their winter, and the spotted 

 their summer, dress. 



I have also met with many specimens of this bird, not only thickly 

 speckled with white and black above, but also on the neck, and strongly 

 tinged on both with ferruginous ; in which dress it has been mistaken 

 by Mr. Pennant and others for a new species ; the description of his 

 " Ruddy Plover " agreeing exactly with this.* A figure of the Sander- 

 ling, in this state of plumage, will be introduced in some part of the 

 present work. 



* See Arct. Zool. p. 486, No. 404. 

 Vol. II.— 24 



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