258 



THE BIRDS OF RIVER AND VLEI 



It is brown above with a white ring round the top of the head ; 

 below white, with two black bands crossing the chest. 

 Length, 6| inches. 



It may be seen on the flats alongside roads, or running 

 along the shore of a vlei or river. Its call is a sharp squeak, 





r*- 'ii- * , • •• -.- , • 





<Ldf 







Fig. 143. — Three-collared Plover and egg. 



emitted usually as the bird rises from the ground. We 

 took its eggs during the months of October and November 

 at Modderfontein. They are deposited in a slight hollow 

 amongst the mud-clots or shingle, where the protective 

 coloration of the eggs renders them difficult of detection. 

 These are pale yellowish thickly streaked and blotched with 



