53S CASPIAN PLOVER. 



Stretches along the eastern shores of the Caspian, continuing to the 

 Sea of Aral, the salt-lakes of Turkestan, and southward to the Amu- 

 Daria. On migration the bird passes by Lenkoran southward to 

 the Persian Gulf and Arabia, while, following the east coast of 

 Africa and the Nile valley, it reaches Cape Colony ; it also occurs 

 in Damaraland and Angola. A specimen has been obtained near 

 Ratnagiri in India. 



Prof. Menzbier says that this Plover arrives on the north shore of 

 the Caspian (especially round Guriev) in the beginning of April, and 

 colonies of about ten pairs take up their residence round a salt lake. 

 The nest is a shallow depression, with hardly any lining, and the 

 eggs, 3 in number, have an ochraceous ground-colour, thickly 

 sprinkled with irregular blackish-brown spots: measurements i'45 

 by I "02 in. Departure takes place by the middle of August. The 

 food consists mainly of Coleoptera and Cicadae. 



The adult in spring has the forehead and cheeks white ; no rufous 

 colour on the hind-neck, but a broad band of bright chestnut across 

 the upper breast, followed by a narrow black band on the lower 

 edge ; the rest of under parts white ; upper surface brown ; primaries 

 dark brown with white shafts ; axillaries white ; bill black ; legs 

 greenish-olive ;■ iris dusky hazel. Length 7'5 in.; wing 5"6 in.; 

 tarsus I "35. In winter the pectoral band is merely brown, and the 

 head and upper parts are umber-colour, with a tinge of sandy buff 

 on the forehead, cheeks and hind-neck. The young have more of a 

 sandy tinge and the feathers of the upper parts have buff edges ; 

 the length of the tarsi serves to distinguish them from the young of 

 the Rin2;ed Plover. 



