26 Proceedings of the 



all of which are hatched with a covering of down. The Insessores are alt 

 naked or squab young, with the single exception of the Caprimulgidae. The 

 Columbidse are the only exception to the Rasores, whilst all the GraUatorea 

 are downy. Of the remaining order, the Natatores, the Pelicanidae form 

 the only exception, and they, though hatched naked, are in two or three 

 days much more presentable. With a few exceptions the young of all the 

 species of which we are speaking of tlie last three orders can run or swim 

 as soon as they leave the egg, the most notable exceptions being the 

 Ardeidffi, Alcidse, Pelicanidse, and Procellaridse. The markings of the young 

 birds of the orders Rasores, Grallatores, and Natatores are remarkably 

 arranged to afford protection. As an instance of this I may mention the 

 case of the two young ringed plovers (exhibited). One day in the early 

 part of August, 1875, I was shooting with a friend on the Essex coast, when 

 I saw a ringed plover settle near the water's edge at some distance from me. 

 As I had only a small walking-stick gun, I wanted to get considerably 

 nearer, and so went round to the back of a bank of Marham giass, and 

 after crawling on my hands and knees for some distance, I reached within 

 about 35 yards of the spot where I had marked the bird down. On peeping 

 through the grass no plover was to be seen, but I could see quite a small 

 bird, which I thought might be a little stint running at the edge of the 

 waves. On firing I could not see any bird fly away, and so concluded I had 

 obtained my specimen. On walking up to the spot I could not find it, and 

 my friend joined me in the search. The sand was scored with the shot 

 marks as though it had been raked, but not a feather was to be seen. After 

 looking about for 20 minutes, we were just on the point of giving up the 

 search in disgust, when I remarked, " What a curious bit of seaweed that 

 is," pointing to a small lump on the sand ; and directly afterwards saw that 

 it was a young plover squatting down with its beak resting on the sand. 

 We must have passed it many times, as the sand around was quite trodden 

 down by us, and it was a wonder it had not been stamped on. I at once 

 secured it for my collection. On passing the spot half an hour later we 

 noticed another young birf), and at once walked down to get it, but although 

 we knew what to look for, it was some time before we could distinguish it 

 from the seaweed and stones which it so closely resembled. When at the 

 mouth of the Petchora in 1875, Messis. Seebohm and Harvie-Brown found 

 on the tundra a nest with the empty eggshells of the grey plover, and 

 though they, assisted by their two collectors, searched for some time, they 

 were unable to find the young birds, althougti from the behaviour of the 

 parents they were certain the chicks were in their immediate vicinity. The 

 next day they found a young bird by accident, which they describe as 

 being very yellow, speckled with black, and admirably adapted for con- 

 cealment upon the yellowish-green moss on the edge of the little bogs, 

 close to which the grey plover seems always to choose a place for its nest. 

 As an instance of the activity of some of these young buds I may mention 

 the following told me by Mr. Bond. He one day found a nest of the little 

 grebe in a small pond about three yards in diameter, and rather shallow. 



