THE WADING BIEDS OF NOKTH CHINA. 147 



There are ten plovers common to North China, namely, the grey- 

 headed plover (Microsarcops cinereus), the crested plover or lapwing 

 (Vanellus vanellus), the golden plover (Charadrius fulvus), the little 

 ringed plover (Aegialitis minor) the larger ringed plover (Aeg. placidus) 

 the sand plover (Aeg. cantianus), the larger sand plover (Aeg. geoffroyi), 

 the Mongolian plover (Aeg. mongolicus), the dotterel (Charadrius 

 veredus) and the pratincole (Glareola orientalis). These are all well 

 known to the sportsman, for he will continually meet them. The 

 grey-headed plover is the largest. It is of a grey colour above, white 

 below, with black and white wings and tail, and a conspicuous black 

 band across the breast. The beak is yellow at the base, black at the 

 tip, and there are yellow fleshy appendages on either side of the face. 

 In flight it resembles the lapwing, to which bird it also bears consider- 

 able resemblance in its habits. 



The lapwing is a particularly well known bird. Its black plumage 

 has a fine metallic sheen changing from a rich green to coppery red in 

 the sunlight. The lower breast and belly are white, the under tail- 

 coverts of a rich chestnut-fawn colour. Its name is derived from its 

 habits of pretending to be wounded, and flapping along with an 

 apparently broken wing in order to draw the intruder away from its nest. 



The golden plover is a graceful bird, about the size of a snipe, 

 wit b fine golden-green plumage thickly speckled with black. I have 

 yet to see the sportsman who will let a golden plover pass if he could 

 bag it, for its flesh is excellent, ranking, some people think, even 

 higher than that of the snipe itself. 



The members of the genus Aegialitis may be distinguished from 

 one another thus : 



Lesser sand plover : Chestnut on back of head ; incomplete neck 

 ring. 



Greater sand plover: Chestnut head, neck, and breast. No neck 

 ring. 



Lesser ringed plover: complete neck ring, grey-black and white 

 back and wings ; no chestnut colour ; with a white ring round 

 the neck. 



Greater ringed plover: the same as the lesser ringed plover, but 

 larger in size. 



Mongolian plover: like the greater sand plover, but with black 

 gorget or neck ring, and of a smaller size. 



The dotterel (Charadrius veredus} is also classed with the plovers 

 and is certainly very like them. It may be recognised by its whitish buff 

 head, chestnut breast and upper flanks, bordered below by black, 

 grey-brown back and long legs. It is, however, very rarely seen. It 



