

200 THE RINGED PLOVER. 



the back. The shadow of the head kills the white throat, so 

 that it also appears to be grey. The bird, either standing on 

 mud, shingle, or sand, or sitting upon its nest, is really so 

 admirably coloured that even at a short distance its protective 

 resemblance to its surroundings conceals it in a manner which 

 must be seen to be appreciated. 



(a) The Adult Male. The general colour above is a pale 

 sandy fawn colour ; the wing coverts are also of the same shade, 

 the greater wing coverts being tipped with white. The quill 

 feathers of the wings are brown. The primaries have dark 

 brown outer webs and tips with more or less white towards 

 the base of the inner webs. The shafts are white, the white 

 increasing in extent on the inner primaries. There are distinct 

 white patches on the outer web. The inner secondaries are pure 

 white ; the innermost long secondaries are fawn-coloured, like 

 the back. The tail feathers are pale brown, tipped with white, 

 with a sub-terminal black bar, the white increasing towards the 

 outer feathers. The penultimate tail feathers are white, with a 

 pale brown inner web and a narrow black sub-terminal bar; the 

 outermost tail feathers are pure white. 



The crown of the head is pale brown ; next to this and extend- 

 ing from eye to eye right across the crown of the head is a black 

 band. Below this in front is a white band, and below this again 

 between it and the bill is a narrow black band. This band 

 reaches to the eye, and running below the eye, widens out and 

 extends to the fawn patch on the crown and nape of the neck. 

 The cheeks, neck, and throat are white, the white extending to 

 form a collar round the neck. 



The chest has a wide black band across it, which narrows 

 towards the back and almost meets. The under surface of the 

 body and the under sides of the wings are pure white, with the 

 exception of the lower primary coverts and quill lining which 

 are tinged with grey. The bill is very deep brown, almost black 

 at the end, the base and remainder being orange. The feet and 

 tarsi are orange, and the claws black. The iris of the eye is deep 

 brown. (Plate VI.) 





