THE PECTORAL SANDPIPERS. 247 



III. THE PECTORAL SANDPIPER. HETEROPYGIA MACULATA. 



Trifiga maadata, Vieill. N. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. xxxiv. p. 465 

 (1819); Dresser, B. Eur. viii. p. 11, pi. 546 (1878); B. 

 O. U. List Brit. B. p. 168 (1883) ; Saunders, ed. Yarrell, 

 Brit. B. iii. p. 368 (1883) ; Seebohm, Hist. Brit. B. iii. p. 

 201 (1885); Saunders, Man. Brit. B. p. 201 (1889), 

 Lilford, Col. Fig. Brit. B. part. xiv. (1890). 



Adult Male in Breeding Plumage — Similar to H. aainiinata, but 

 never so rufous, with a more blackish head, contrasting with 

 the ashy-brown of the hind-neck. It may always be distin- 

 guished from H. acuminata by the greater extent of the ashy- 

 fulvous colour, which reaches from the upper throat to the 

 chest, and is thickly and regularly streaked with dusky-black- 

 ish, instead of being rufous with black spots ; apical half of bill 

 brownish-black, basal half dull greenish-yellow ; legs and feet 

 buff. Total length, 8 inches; culmen, I'l j wing, 4*9; tail, 

 19 ; tarsus, i"o. 



Adult Female. — Similar to the male. Total length, 8 inches ; 

 wing, 49. 



Adult in Winter Plumage. — Differs very little from the summer 

 plumage, but is browner and with less rufous on the upper sur- 

 face, the head and neck being of the same colour as the back; 

 the character of the throat and fore-neck is exactly the same as 

 that of the summer plumage. 



Young. — Much more rufous than either the breeding or winter 

 plumage, and distinguished by the whitish margins to the 

 scapulous and inner secondaries. The young birds appear to 

 have almost as much striping on the throat and breast as the 

 old ones; in this respect they differ from the young oi H, acumi- 

 nata^ where the stripes are confined to the lower throat and 

 sides of neck. 



Characters. — The Pectoral Sandpiper may be easily distin- 

 guished from our other British species by the generic char- 

 acters above given, and by its brown legs, dark upper tail- 

 coverts, and by the band across the fore-neck and chest. 



Range in Great Britain — This American species has often 

 occurred during autumn and winter, and has been shot also 



