Proceedings. S 



a nest very improbable. Walking southward along the coast 

 fiom New Romney to the point of Dungeness, my eye all at 

 once rested on three eggs among the shingle, and I instantly 

 perceived they were those of the Kentish Plover. Just as 

 when I first made the acquaintance of the birds some years 

 ago, I found them more readily distinguishable from their 

 near relative the Common Ring Plover than I had expected 

 would be the case, so now I found a greater difference between 

 the eggs of the two species than I had supposed. The nest 

 consisted merely of a little wiry dry grass in a slight 

 depression among the shingle. The eggs, only three in 

 number (instead of four, the number almost invariably laid 

 by the Ring Plover), were not arranged with their small ends 

 together according to the habit of that species. As might be 

 expected from this circumstance they were also less pointed 

 at the small end. The ground colour was more olive, and of 

 a darker shade, and the markings were more scrawly. I took 

 one of the eggs, and found on blowing it that it was almost 

 fresh. From one-quarter to half-a-mile further along the 

 beach, one of my companions came upon a second nest 

 situated almost exactly as the first one, and also containing 

 three eggs closely similar to those already described. These 

 were also not placed point to point. The specimen taken 

 proved, however, to be considerably more incubated than 

 that first obtained. Judging from these two nests it seems 

 as though the Kentish Plover may be a little later than the 

 Ring Plover in its breeding, as on the previous evening we 

 had found a nest of the latter species, the eggs of which were 

 very much incubated. We also found three young ones, 

 perhaps two or three days old, and in another place a single 

 one about the same age. The flesh-coloured legs of these 

 young birds sufficiently indicated the species. 



Some of our party got a good view of the old bird belonging 

 to the second Kentish Plover's nest ; but as regards the first, 

 although we retreated to a point out of sight in order to allow 

 the bird to come back to her eggs, yet when we cautiously 

 approached she was off before we got near, and we only 

 obtained quite a distant view of her. 



