THE AVOCET 221 



lead intruders from their eggs or young, and their numerous 

 cunning devices are carried on with surprising cleverness and 

 perseverance. When walking or running over the flats, or wading 

 in shallow water, the stilts are graceful birds; but their flight, 

 with their long legs stretched out behind them, is clumsy. On 

 the wing they constantly utter a sharp cry, something like the 

 bark of a small dog. 



Genus Recurvirostra. 



Bill long and slender, curved upwards. Tarsi much longer 

 than the middle toe ; the toes united by an indented web ; the hind 

 toe very short. Cosmopolitan. 



The Avocet. 



Recurvirostra novae-liollandiae. 



Head and upper part of neck chestnut. Middle of the wings, quills, 

 and shoulders, black; remainder white. Tail pale ash. Bill black. Legs, 

 blue. Eye, red. Length of the wing, 9 inches; of the tarsus, 3. .5 inches. 

 Australia and New Zealand. 



At one time, our avocet was seen fairly frequently in some 

 localities, notably in the swampy lands on the north bank of the 

 Waikerikeri, by the Waimate lagoon, near the mouth of the 

 Rakaia, and on the lagoons near Eockwood, in the Malvern 

 district. Now, however, it is very rare. There are generally 

 four eggs in a nest ; they are of a pale yellowish brown colour, and 

 are marked with si)ots of umber brown and black, with small 

 grej'ish marks interspersed; their length is 1.8 in. The webbed 

 feet of these birds enable them to walk over very soft mud. 



Family Scolopacidae. 



Bill long, slender, grooved to the tip. Wings long and pointed. 

 Hind toe short. Eye dark brown in all. 



