BIRDS. 167 



Bar-tailed God wit. This and the next species have long 

 Limosa Lapponica. legs, slightly webbed feet, and long 

 rather upward-curving beaks. The 

 two are distinguished by their tails being respectively 

 barred and black as expressed in their names. The 

 Bar-tailed Godwit has occurred several times in Shrop- 

 shire on its migrations. One in the Hawkstone collec- 

 tion was shot on Hine Heath, Dec., 1849 ; Mr. T. H. 

 Thursfield has one, shot at Barrow in 1870 ; in 1878 two 

 were shot near Cressage ; and on Jan. 29th, 1885, one at 

 Buildwas. 



Black-tailed Godwit. A very rare spring and autumn visitor. 

 L. Belgica. Rev. W. Houghton saw four in the 



spring of 1877, near Preston on the 

 Weald Moors. 



CURLEW B. This large bird, and the much smaller 

 Nnmenins arquata. Whimbrel, is easily known by the 



curious downward-curving bill. The 

 Curlew is numerous on our Shropshire moorlands and 

 breeds regularly on the Longmynd, Whixall Moss, Clun 

 Forest, and a few other places in the County. Usually 

 they are very retiring in their habits, but in winter some- 

 times come down to the lowlands to feed. 



Whimbrel. A rare visitor to Shropshire Moors on its spring 

 N. phceops. and autumn migrations. It has never 



bred here. It resembles the Curlew 

 but is smaller and more slenderly built. 



Black Tern. This is the first of a large group of birds the 



Hydrochelidon nigva. Terns, or Sea Swallows, and Gulls 



which are all essentially marine in their 



habits, and must be regarded only as stragglers to an 



