BIRDS CHARADRIDAE — AEGIALITIS MELODUS. 



695 



This species considerably resembles Hiaticula minor, of Europe, and H. torquata, of the 

 same continent also, with both of which it has been confounded. It is intermediate in size 

 between the two, and, in fact, can only be distinguished from the former with some difficulty. 

 It appears to inhabit the whole of North America. 



List of specimens. 



AEGIALITIS MELODUS, (0 r d .) Cab. 



Pil)iiig Plover. 



Charadrius melodus, Ord, ed. Wils. VJI, 1824, 71.— Bon. Am. Orn. IV, 1832, 74; pi. xxiv.— Nutt. Man. II, 

 18.— AuD. Orn. Biog. Ill, 1835, 154 : V, 578 ; pi. 220.— 1e. Birds Am. V, 1^42, 223 ; 

 pi. 321. 

 .iegialtes melodus, Bon. List, 1838. 

 Jlegialitis melodus, Cab. Jour. 1856, 424. 



Charadrius hiaticula, Var. Wils. Am. Orn. V, 1812, 30 ; pi. xxxvii. 

 Cliaradrius okeni, Wagler, Syst. Av. 1827, No. 24. 



Figures. — Wilson, Am. Orn. V, pi. 37, fig. 3. — Bonap. Am. Oru. IV, pi. 24, fig. 3. — Aud. B. of Am. pi. 220; oct. 

 ed. V, pi. 321. 



Sp. Ch.— About the size of the preceding; bill short, strong. Mult. Forehead, ring around the back of the neck, and 

 entire under parts, white, a band of black in front above tlie band of white ; band encircling the neck before and behind black, 

 immediately below tlie ring of wliite on tlic neck behind. Head above and upper parts of body liglit brownish cinereous ; 

 rump and upper tail coverts lighter, and often nearly white ; quills dark brown, with a large portion of their inner webs 

 and shafts white ; sliorter primaries with a large portion of their outer webs white ; tail at base white, and with the outer 

 feathers white ; middle feathers with a wide subterminal band of brownish black, and tipped with white . Bill orange at base, 

 tipped with black; legs orange yellow. Female. Similar to the male, but with the dark colors lighter and less in extent, 

 young'. No black band in front ; collar around the back of the neck ashy brown. 



Total length, about 7 inches ; wing, 4^ ; tail, 2 inches. 



Hub, — Eastern coast of North America. Nebraska, (Lieutenant Warren.) Louisiana, (Air. G. Wurdemann.) 



Specimens from the survey of Lt. Warren, collected by Dr. F. V. Hay den in the valley of 

 the Eiver Platte, are in plumage apparently perfectly mature, and one which has never been 

 accurately described nor figured by any author. la these specimens the black ring around the 

 neck is perfect in front, and very conspicuous in both males and females, though narrower 

 and less distinct in the latter. Usually in specimens obtained on the Atlantic coast, the ring 

 alluded to is interrupted in front and assumes the form of two large spots on the side of neck 

 or upper part of the breast, in which plumage this bird has been described and figured by both 

 Bonaparte and Audubon, as cited above. The figure by Wilson represents the more mature 

 bird. 



There are no specimens of this bird in the present collection from west of the Rocky 

 mountains. 



