CHAPTER IX. 



GOLDEN PLOVER, CURLEW, GRAY PLOVER. 



IN the West we have in the spring and fall 

 great numbers of the golden plover a beautiful 

 bird, testing the skill and patience of the sports- 

 man, and one that is very delicate and rich eating 

 on the table. It is stated, in some books I have 

 looked into, that the golden plover is essentially 

 a shore bird. This is a great error, if the same 

 species is meant, for it visits Illinois and Iowa, 

 and I doubt not the country further west, in 

 prodigious numbers. It is called the golden 

 plover from being speckled with yellow on the 

 back of the head and neck. Its principal colors 

 are not at all like gold ; and when the birds are 

 seen in flocks on the grass-lands they love to 

 frequent, the golden spots cannot be distinguished. 

 It is a handsome bird, graceful in shape, and 

 quite plump. The golden plover is not quite as 

 large as a quail, but almost, when fat. The male 

 is dark in color, with white spots on the breast, 

 and narrow white streaks on the cheeks. The 



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