STONE-CURLEW 53 



agree in the oval form of the nostrils, and the presence of only 

 three toes to each foot. In this bird, which averages about 16 inches 

 in length, the sexes are indistinguishable, so far as plumage is concerned, 

 the general colour of the feathers of the upper-parts being pale brown 

 streaked with black. The lesser wing-coverts are, however, marked by 

 a broad white bar, while the primary quills of the wings are black, 

 relieved by a pair of white spots. Another characteristic feature is to 

 be found in the white-tipped black terminal portions of the outer webs 

 of the greater coverts of the secondary quills of the wings, thus forming 

 a conspicuous black bar edged with white. Buff streaked with black 

 is the colouring of the neck and breast. Immature birds differ by 

 their duller tone of colouring and dark-barred tail. In the down-clad 

 chick the general colour is greyish buff, with a narrow black line 

 running down each side of the neck and the ridge of the back, a black 

 band along each flank, and a dark stripe and horseshoe-like mark on 

 the forehead. 



A native of the breezy upland heaths, downs, and bare stony plains 

 (which latter form in many parts of the world its favourite resorts), 

 the stone-curlew is a resident or migratory species, whose geographical 

 range extends from central and southern Europe and the north of 

 Africa, through south-western and Central Asia to India, Ceylon, and 

 Burma, where it is only a winter-visitor. 



As is implied by its local name of Norfolk plover. East Anglia is 

 one of the British strongholds of the species, which is, however, widely, 

 although locally, distributed over the greater part of England, breeding 

 not only in the eastern, but likewise in the southern and midland 

 counties, where the downs near Tring are a favourite resort. North 

 of Yorkshire the stone-curlew becomes very rare, and to Scotland it is 

 only an occasional straggler, as it likewise is to Wales, and also to 

 Ireland, where only some half-dozen instances of its occurrence, and 

 then in winter, are on record. In Wales a specimen was killed in 

 Merioneth in 1903. Although a certain number of these birds remain 

 to pass the winter-months in the mild climate of Devon and Cornwall, 

 the great bulk of the species leave the British shores for the south in 

 October to return with the spring in April. As a genus, stone-curlews 

 are represented by half-a-score of species or races, whose geographical 

 range, in addition to that of the typical species, includes the whole 

 of Africa, together with Central, and a considerable part of tropical. 

 South America. The complete absence of the group from North 

 America is a somewhat remarkable circumstance in geographical 

 distribution. 



