the Birds of Barbados. 491 



observation that birds prefer migrating with a " beam " wind. 

 A shift of wind from the north-east, witli squally weather 

 to the south-east, is ardently longed for by the Barbados 

 sportsmen towards tlie end of August, as this forces the 

 migratory hosts to alight instead of passing over at a great 

 height, as they are seen to do when the wind is from the 

 north-east. The first arrivals of this speeies are invariably 

 black-breasted birds, showing that the old birds precede the 

 young, and the first comers are nearly all males. The young 

 birds without black on the breast appear about the 12th of 

 September, and continue to pass till the end of October, 

 sometimes stragglers are as late as November, Even in the 

 most favourable seasons, only a fraction of the immense 

 flights that pass over the island ever alight ; but if, attracted 

 by the green land and " mock- birds " pegged out near the 

 shooter's hut, they deviate from their line of flight, they are 

 doomed, for so well do the sportsmen imitate the call of the 

 Golden Plover, and so irresistible is the charm, that the 

 birds come down to it, and in spite of gaps in their ranks, 

 they wheel round and dash past the shooter again and again 

 till all are killed. 



-- 33. ^GIALITIS SEMIPALMATA (Bp.). Ring-UCck. 



This bird arrives in August and remains till the end of 

 November ; it is one of the last of the Charadriidse to quit 

 the island. It does not appear in large flocks, but consorts 

 with Tringa minutilla, Tringa fuscicoUis, and Ereunetes pu- 

 sillas. It also afi'ects the shore-line, running about among 

 the sea-ware cast up by the waves. 



-f 34. ^GIALITIS HIATICULA (LiuU.). 



This must be a very rare visitor; I only obtained one ex- 

 ample, which was shot at Chancery Lane on the 10th Sep- 

 tember, 1888. Mr. Massiah at once recognized its note as 

 different from that of ^. sem'ipalmata, which attracted his 

 attention, and he succeeded in shooting it. I submitted this 

 specimen to Mr. Seebohm, who remarks, " It certainly is not 

 Charadrius semipalmalus. Both the length of wing and of 

 bill are too large, and the webs between the toes are much too 



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