128 BIRDS OF TASMANIA. 



New Guinea, South Afriea, and the Indian Peninsula, breeding 

 in the high north in Siberia, Eussia, and Alaska. 



Observations. — The true home of this globe-trotting bird is 

 within the Arctic Circle, where it breeds during the summer, 

 wandering far southward during the winter, arriving here in small 

 flocks during the beginning of our sunuiier. 



All writers on the Grey Plover state it is essentially a shore- 

 loving bird, never venturing far inland, yet the only locality from 

 which I have records of it for Tasmania is in the Lake district. 

 Doubtless it also frequents the Low Head district, in company 

 with the Lesser Golden Plover, as the country is more suitable 

 for it. 



LESSER GOLDEN PLOVER 



(Charadrius dominicus, Mull.) 



Male (breedmg ■plumage). — Upper surface, including head, 

 lower back, rump, and upper tail coverts, mottled with black, 

 golden-buff, and ashy-white markings; scapulars and wing coverts 

 with more gold and buff than back; tail feathers brown, barred 

 with pale golden, outer ones notched with white on outer webs; 

 frontal band and eyebrow white, extending down the sides of the 

 neck and joining the white on the sides of the body ; sides of face, 

 ear coverts, and throat smoky-black ; centre of fore-neck, breast, and 

 abdomen deep black; thighs black; under, tail coverts white; axii- 

 laries smoked-brown ; iris dark hazel ; bill black ; legs and feet lead- 

 grey to nearly black. Dimensions in mm. : — Length, 260; bill, 

 24; wing, 170; tail, 65; tarsus, 40.5. 



Female {breeding plumage). — Similar to male, but with black 

 on breast patchy. 



Male and Female {ivinter jilnmage). — Black on face and breast 

 wanting; axillaries always smoked-brown. 



Young. — Resemble adults in winter plumage, but with moz-e 

 golden on upper surface and slightly more brownish on lower. 



Nest. — " Merely a hollow in the ground upon a piece of tvu-fy 

 land, overgrown with moss and lichen, and lined with broken 

 stalks of reindeer moss " (Seebohm). 



Eggs. — Clutch three to four; pyriform in shape; texture fairly 

 fine ; surface glossy ; colour varies from rich clay-brown to light 

 stone-grey, mottled all over with blotches of black, the underlying 

 blotches and spots being reddish-brown. Dimensions as given by 

 Dr. Sharpe are :— 1.85-2.05 in. x 1.27-1.35 in. 



Breeding Season. — Similar to preceding species. 



Geographical Distribution. — Tasmania, Australia in general, 

 New Guinea, New Zealand, many islands in the Pacific, India, and 

 South America, breeding in the far north of the old and new 

 worlds. 



Observations. — Here we have another bird whose globe-trot- 

 ting propensities are at least as great as those of the Grey Plover. 



