CHARADRIID/E. 



551 



^^T%, 





THE GREY PLOVER. 



Squatarola helvetica (Linnreus). 



This is a larger bird than the Golden Plover, with a more robust 

 bill, and may be recognized on the wing by its black axillaries as 

 well as its white tail-coverts ; while, on handling a specimen, the 

 presence of a distinct hind-toe is an unfailing characteristic. As 

 compared with that species it is less numerous, and it is not found in 

 large flocks, but small parties are widely distributed along our coasts 

 and estuaries. A few black-breasted birds return from their northern 

 quarters by the end of July or beginning of August ; the majority 

 of the young arrive in September ; and the bulk of the adults come 

 in October and November, after their moult. Considerable numbers 

 spend the winter here, and flocks of a score or more frequent the sea- 

 shore and mud-flats up to the end of May, by which time the black 

 breast has been assumed ; while birds which are not breeding remain 

 till June and even July. Though a regular winter-visitant to Ireland, 

 it is less numerous there than in Great Britain, in which, again, it is 



