on Spanish Ornithology. 73 



Grey Plovers^ and Curlew Sandpipers. On the 8th of April the 

 Pratincoles arrived^ and after that date they were abundant 

 all over the dry mud and sand, feeding on beetles. Their 

 beak has a very wide gape, which is bordered with a margin 

 of deep vermilion. Sometimes twenty or thirty of these 

 birds would cast themselves down on the mud all round one, 

 and all lie down head to wind, much as a Nightjar squats on 

 the sand. They resemble a Tern while standing, a Plover 

 when running, and on summer evenings hawk after insects 

 like a Swallow. 



No Avocets were seen till April 13th, when I shot three 

 out of a large flight. One of these was much smaller than 

 the others and proved a male, the larger pair being male and 

 female. This discrepancy in size appeared not unusual. 

 They are singularly restless birds, active and sprightly iu 

 all their movements. Their cry is a short, sharp, "jerky'' 

 pipe; the Stilt's is a harsh croak. Both species fly with the 

 long legs extended. The latter vary considerably in the dis- 

 position of black and white, especially on the head and neck. 

 Some few have roseate breasts. The Stilts are surface- 

 feeders, never putting their heads under ; and as, owing to 

 the extreme length of their legs, they cannot reach the 

 ground with their bills, they necessarily feed in water about 

 knee-deep. On the same day (April 13th) numbers of Little 

 Terns {Sterna minuta) appeared, gracefully hovering over the 

 weedy water. The larger Whiskered Tern {Hydrochelidon 

 hybrida) had been frequently observed previously. Along 

 the rushy edges of the marisma, bordering the Goto de Doiiana, 

 BuflF-backed and Squacco Herons were numerous, the former 

 frequently sitting on the backs of the half- wild cattle, where 

 they resort to feed on the ticks and " warbles," as farmers 

 call what, I believe, is the embryo gadfly. The Herons often 

 appear fast asleep in this strange position, their heads snugly 

 tucked under their back-feathers, their long toes and strong 

 claws enabling them to sit thus securely. Scattered about in 

 the shallow water were pairs of Little Egrets ; these and 

 the Squacco Herons seem to feed on the large water-beetles, 

 often plunging their heads under water to catch them as they 



