90 FEATHERED GAME 



nithology, lies in the fact that the ring of black 

 very nearly meets on the forebreast or may en- 

 tirely encircle the neck ; its ring is supposed to 

 be larger and the color darker than in the or- 

 dinary Piping Plover. There is so much varia- 

 tion in the amount of collar worn by them that 

 it is often very hard to say to which form a 

 specimen belongs. 



WILSON'S PLOVER. 



(Octhodromus wilsonius.) 



This is a rare straggler from the south, sel- 

 dom taken north of Long Island, but in its 

 southern wanderings often going to Brazil, 

 Peru, and even farther on. He can scarcely 

 be mistaken for any other member of the fam- 

 ily, for the widely different shape and color 

 of his bill as well as its larger size will place 

 him at once. He also lacks the orange ring 

 around the eye. 



The bird breeds throughout its range, 

 scarcely making a nest, but laying its three or 

 four eggs in a hollow in the warm, dry sand 

 above the reach of the tide. This plover is 

 mainly a dweller on the sea coast. 



