466 The IVater-fowl Family 



ing-ground is general throughout the range. 

 The young run and hide on leaving the shell, 

 and few little chicks have more devoted parents. 

 Along the coast the killdeer comes to the marshes 

 and rarely is seen on the flats, generally prefer- 

 ring the fields where the grass is short and grass- 

 hoppers and various insects abound. Here it also 

 feeds on little worms and grubs. In localities 

 where the life of every bird is in danger, the cry 

 killdee has often served a timely warning, and 

 this restless, watchful plover has started many 

 a flock of unsuspecting birds. It winters regu- 

 larly in the Southern states, and some few brave 

 the cold weather of the North. The Bermudas 

 and West Indies see them at this time, and many 

 pass into Central America. 



Toward the end of November, 1888, large 

 numbers of this species appeared on the Atlan- 

 tic Coast from Nova Scotia to Long Island, New 

 York, having been carried north by a storm. 

 None of these birds were found far in the in- 

 terior, and most of them disappeared in a few 

 days, although a few lingered until March on the 

 New England coast. 



SEMIPALMATED PLOVER 



y {^gialitis semipalmata) 



Adult male in spring and fall plumage — Front, throat, ring around 

 the neck, and under parts, white ; a black band crosses the 

 breast, extending around the back of the neck, below the white 



