Vanellus. birds. PRESSIROSTRES. Ill 



Length 9^ inches ; weight 4 ounces. Bill an inch in length, bends a little 

 upwards. Legs short, a little way naked above the knee ; claws black. The 

 hind toe " turns inwards, instead of taking, as is usual, a straight direction 

 backwards," (Captain Sabine, Parry's 1st Voy. App. cc.) Frontal band, be- 

 liind the ear, lower part of the neck behind, and lower part of the back, throat, 

 and belly, white ; breast black, the colour extending round the neck up to 

 the ears, and thence to the bill across the forehead. Crown reddish-white, 

 with black streaks. Back ferruginous, with black sjiots. A brown band on 

 the rump. Quills dusky, shafts of the primaries, tips of the secondaries, and 

 edges of the greater covers, white. Tail of 12 feathers, black tipped with 

 white, sometimes the two middle feathers are wholly black, and the outer one 

 on each side white. In the female the colour is less bright — Nest a shallow 

 pit in the sand on the shore. Kggs 4, olivaceous, with brown spots. In the 

 yomig, the wliite about the head has dusky streaks ; the back is dusky, the fea- 

 thers with reddish margins ; breast dusky, with white edges. From having 

 seen this species at all seasons in Zetland, I conclude that it breeds there. 

 Captain Sabine states that it breeds in the North Georgian Islands. — During 

 winter it frequents the sea-shore, turning over the small stones in search of 

 insects. 



Gen. LXXII. VANELLUS. Lapwing. — Nasal groove ex- 

 tending two-thirds of the length of the bill. Hind toe 

 distinct. The fourth and fifth quills longest. 



160. N. cristatus. Common Lapwing. — The feathers of the 

 hind head produced, subrecurved, forming a crest. 



CapeUa sive Vanellus, Will. Orn. 228. Sibb. Scot. 19 — Tringa vanellus, 

 Linn. Syst. i. 248. Penn. Brit. Zool. ii. 458 — Van. ci'est. Temm. Orn. 

 ii. 558 — E., Bastard Plover, Pewit ; 5", Peesweep ; l-F, Cornchwegl ; 

 G, Curcag, abhararcan-luachrach. — Resident. 

 Length 134, breadth 31 inches ; weight 8 ounces. Bill 1 inch long, black. 

 Irides hazel. Legs dull orange. The crown, crest and breast, black, irides- 

 cent ; back green, iridescent ; sides of the neck, belly, and base of the tail, 

 white. Quills black, with a white spot on the tips of the first four ; secon- 

 daries white half way from their base. Tail white, the end black ; the vent 

 and upper cover ferruginous. Female with the colours more obscure, and the 

 crest shorter — Nest, consisting of a few dried stalks, placed in a shallow cavity 

 in moist gi'ounds. Eggs 4, olive-brown, blotched with black. I have found 

 them to weigh in grains 435, 426, 413, 400. The young have the crest very 



short, and the feathers both above and below edged with yellow After the 



breeding season the la])wing occurs in flocks, and frequents the sea-shore, and 

 occasionally, during mild weather, turnip fields. 



Gen. LXXIII. SQUAT AROLA. —Nasal groove short. 

 Hind toe minute. The first quill longest. 



161. S. cinerea. — Bill, legs, and irides black ; middle tail- 

 feathers with black and white rays. 



Pluvialis cinerea. Will. Orn. 229. Sibb. Scot. 19 — Tringa Squatarola 



et Helvetica, Linn. Syst. ii. 250-252. Penn. Brit. Zool. ii. 458 Va- 



nellus melanogaster, Temm. Orn. ii. 547 E, Grey Plover. — A winter 



visitant of England, probably breeds in Scotland. 

 Length 12, breadth 24 inches; weight 7 ounces. Bill 1| inch long. Lores, 

 throat, sides and front of the neck, middle of the breast and belly, black ; the 



