COMMON SANDPIPER. 193 



Lapwing, or Peewit. The cry of this interesting 

 bird, and the -flapping noise which it makes with its 

 wings during flight, are well known to every person 

 who resides in the country. The Lapwing breeds in 

 marshy places, laying its eggs upon a little bed of dry 

 grass, which it forms in some hollow spot upon the 

 ground. In parental affection it is exceeded by none 

 of the feathered tribes ; oftentimes throwing itself into 

 the way of men or dogs, for the purpose of drawing 

 them to a distance from the only objects of its anxiety. 

 These birds feed on worms, which they induce to leave 

 their holes by striking the ground strongly with their 

 feet, near the spot from whence they issue. When kept 

 in gardens, they are considered to be very useful in 

 clearing them of worms and snails. Both the flesh and 

 the eggs of Lapwings are reckoned great delicacies for 

 the table. 



Common Sandpiper. These birds are distinguished 

 from the others of their tribe, by the loud and clear 

 piping noise which they make ; by a jerking motion in 

 their tails, not unlike a wagtail ; and by the mode in 

 which they run after their insect prey, along the pebbly 

 sides of rivers and streams. They are frequently seen in 

 pairs, during the summer months, but are by no means 

 numerous in this country. They form their nest in the 

 jhole of a bank, and lay five eggs, which are mottled, and 

 marked with dark spots, on a yellowish ground. 



The bill is smooth. The upper parts of the body are 

 jash-coloured, marked with black streaks; and the lower 

 (parts are white. The legs are of a pale green colour. 

 Irhe weight of the Common Sandpiper is generally about 

 !two ounces. 



