174 



British Birds. 



is gregarious in its habits, large numbers nesting in compan}- in marshes. The food 

 consists largely of gnats and mosquitoes as well as of water-beetles and small shell- 

 fish. The nest is made of small bents of grass or dead reeds. The eggs are three 

 or four in number, very similar to those of the Avocets, and measure an inch-and-a- 

 half to an inch-and-three-quarters in length. 



The Common Curlew. 



With the Curlews we commence the study of a large group 



THE COMMON of Wading-Birds belonging to the Sub-family 7\)/fl«/«,/. They 

 CURLEW. '' " " , , . 



,,, . , . have a long bill, often curved, and the tarsus is transversely 



[Numenius arquatus.) n i > ^ 



plated before and behind, though in the true Curlews the hinder 

 aspect of the tarsus is reticulated. Both the outer and inner toe are joined to the 

 middle one by a basal membrane. 



The Curlew nests on the moor-lands of all three kingdoms, and in the autumn 

 and winter betakes itself to the sea-shore, where it is found either singly or in small 

 flocks on the mud-flats of tidal rivers. The female is larger than the male and has a 

 much longer bill. In spring the streaks on the breast become broader and blacker, 

 and the upper plumage is also much darker. In winter the Curlew visits India and 

 Africa, and in the breeding-season it is found in Northern and Central Europe, as 

 far east as Lake Baikal. The nest is a depresion in the grass, with a slight lining of 

 leaves or dead grass. The eggs are four in number and pear-shaped, olive-brown, 

 with black spots and blotches, generally round the larger end of the egg. The length 

 is from two-and-three-quarters to nearly three inches. 



