138 A MANUAL OF THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
95. Rhyacophilus glareola——WOOD SANDPIPER. 
Mathews, Vol. III., pt. 3, pl. 156, Aug. 18th, 1913. 
Tringa glareola Linné, Syst. Nat., 10th ed., p. 149, Jan. Ist, 1758: Sweden, Europe. 
Tringa grallatoris Montagu, Suppl. Ornith. Dict., App. S., ‘‘ Sandpiper, Long-legged,” 1813 : 
England. New name for 7’. glareola Linné. 
Totanus affinis Horsfield, Trans. Linn Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XIII., pt. 1, p. 191, 1821: 
Java. 
Totanus sylvestris Brehm, Handb. Naturg. Vég. Deutschl., p. 638, 1831 (pref. July): Germany. 
Totanus palustris Brehm, 7b., p. 639: Germany. 
Totanus kuhlit Brehm, 7b., p. 641: Java. 
Totanus glareoides Gray, Zool. Miscell., pt. VI., p. 86, June 29th, 1844: Nepal. Nom. 
nud. 
Totanus glareola vulgaris A. E. Brehm, Verz. Samml., p. 12, 1866. Nom. nud. 
Rhyacophilus glareola picturata Mathews, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, Vol. XXXVI., p. 82, May 
25th, 1916: North-west Australia. 
DisTRIBUTION.—Winter visitor to Australia, breeding in the northern hemisphere. 
Adult male in breeding-plumage.—Dusky-brown above, with blotches of darker 
brown distributed over the upper-surface ; head and hind-neck streaked with white, 
and white spots distributed over the back and wings; upper wing-coverts for the 
most part brown, more or less fringed and barred with white ; bastard-wing, primary- 
coyerts and quills dark brown, shaft of outer primary white; secondary-quills 
somewhat paler brown, and edged with white at the tips ; the innermost secondaries 
like the back ; upper tail-coverts white, barred with brown; middle tail-feathers 
brown, barred with white or buffy-white, the outer feathers for the most part white 
with irregular markings of pale brown; eye-ring white ; eyebrow and sides of face 
minutely spotted with brown; ear-coverts brown, intermixed with white; chin 
white, the feathers of the lower throat brown with white margins ; fore-neck and 
breast ash-grey, more or less barred with white ; the feathers on the sides of the 
body white, barred with brown like the under tail-coverts, but more sparsely on 
the latter ; middle of abdomen dull white; axillaries white, regularly barred with 
brown ; under wing-coverts brown, fringed with white, the greater series grey with 
white tips ; bill blackish-brown, base of lower mandible brown ; iris dark brown ; 
tarsi and feet light olive-brown. Total length 225 mm.; culmen 31, wing 128, tail 
50, tarsus 37. 
Adult female —Similar to the adult male but larger. 
Adult in winter-plumage.—Differs from the summer-dress in being more uniform 
on the head and hind-neck, and in having a well-pronounced white superciliary 
streak ; also in having the breast uniform grey. 
Immature—The upper spotting is rufous and the spots are closer together ; 
the throat and chest ashy with distinct shaft-stripes of brown which also occur on 
flanks ; axillaries not regularly barred. 
Nestling in down.—Upper-surface for the most part black, with longitudinal 
smoky-grey lines on the head, hind-neck, and back; a narrow black loral streak 
which cuts through the eye on to the sides of the hinder crown; entire under- 
surface white. 
Nest.—A depression in the earth. 
£ggs—Clutch, four ; ground-colour bluish, covered more thickly at the larger 
end with large spots and blotches of dark purplish-red, and underlying ones of 
lavender; axis 39, diameter 27. 
Breeding-season.—May, June. (Siberia.) 
Distribution and forms.—The northern regions of Europe and Asia, ranging 
southward to Australia in winter. No subspecies are at present recognised, though 
Mathews observed “the eastern form is smaller and paler,’’ and probably fuller 
series will later confirm that statement. 
