204 BIRDS OF CHESHIRE. 
LAPWING. 
VANELLUS VULGARIS, Bechstein. 
Peewit, Peesnips, Plover, Green Plover, Happinch, 
Lappinch. 
On account of its striking appearance and peculiarly 
characteristic habits, the Lapwing is one of the most 
familiar of our resident birds. It is present throughout 
the year in all parts of the county, except in winter, 
when it is absent from the moorlands. About the end 
of February the birds begin to pair; the noisy aérial 
love-antics of the males at this season forcing them- 
selves upon the notice of every one in their neighbour- 
hood. By this time those birds which nest upon the 
hills and moors in the East have returned to their 
breeding quarters, but a spell of frost or snow will 
drive them back to the lowlands. Equally at home in 
the pastures and amongst the heather, the Lapwing 
abounds throughout the Hill Country during the 
breeding season. The flocks usually descend from the 
uplands in October, but in the mild season of 1897-98 
they were to be seen on the moors east of Macclesfield 
throughout the winter. 
In spite of systematic egg-gathering by farm-labourers 
and others, the Lapwing holds its own in Wirral and 
the Plain. In the rural districts almost every field 
supports at least a pair of birds, whose vociferous 
anxiety on behalf of their eggs or young often defeats 
its own purpose. 
As soon as the young are able to fly, the birds 
commence to pack, and we have seen flocks of thirty 
as early as the 4th of June. On the approach of 
