LITTLE RINGED PLOVER. 411 



frequents in preference the banks of rivers, where it breeds. 

 It lays its eggs on the sanJ, not a particle of grass, or other 

 material being used. It is very partial to sand banks, form- 

 ing islands, which are often met Avith in some of the larger 

 rivers of the Continent. It may also frequently be found 

 during the breeding-season upon those large extents of sand, 

 which are met with at some little distance from the borders of 

 rivers, overgrown in part with a coarse wiry grass." 



The egg of this bird is figured by Mr. Hewitson, from 

 whose excellent work the previous extract was made. The 

 egg measures one inch and one-eighth in length, by seven 

 eighths of an inch in breadth ; it is of a pale yellowish stone 

 colour, with numerous small spots of three colours, bluish ash, 

 red brown, and dark brown. I have also seen an egg of 

 this bird in the collection of Lady Rachel Russell, of which 

 I was permitted to have a drawing. This example exactly 

 agrees with the egg figured by Mr. Hewitson in size, colours, 

 and markings ; the spots being only less numerous, but 

 rather larger. 



The food is similar to that of the other two species, — 

 namely, aquatic insects in their various stages, and small 

 worms. 



In the adult bird, the beak is black ; the irides brown ; the 

 forehead white, with a black patch above it extending to the 

 eye on each side ; top of the head and the occiput ash brown ; 

 lore and ear-coverts black ; nape of the neck white ; back, 

 scapulars, wing-coverts, tertials, rump, and upper tail-coverts, 

 ash brown ; primary and secondary wing-feathers dusky 

 brown ; these and the greater wing-coverts edged with white ; 

 the first primary quill-feather only with a broad white shaft ; 

 tail-feathers ash brown at the base, darker towards the end ; 

 the five outer tail-feathers on each side white at the end, this 

 colour increasing in extent on each lateral feather, the outer 

 one on each side having only a dusky spot on the inner web. 



