KEY TO THE WATER 15IRDS OF FLORIDA. 



293 



land coast as a rule. A few years ago there was a great flight of these 

 birds along the coast of Massachusetts in December, and hundreds of 

 them were sent to market and sold. I killed several near Hyannis, Mass., 

 at that time. 



0^^ 



^gialites vocifera. 



The Killdeer is a common bird in Florida, 

 white mottled and lined with chocolate brown. 



The eggs are pale brownish 



Subgenus ^GIALITIS Boie. 



/EGIALITIS SEMIPALHATA Bonap. 

 Semipalmated Plover. Ring-neck. 



Adult : Forehead white, succeeded by a band of black; rest 

 of head, back, and wings ashy gray ; a dull stripe of blackish 

 passing from the bill under the eye to the sides of the neck ; a 

 small patch of white back of the eye ; a broad band of black on 

 the breast ; rest of under parts white ; throat white, extending 

 around the neck and joining at the back in a very narrow 

 stripe ; secondaries tipped with white ; bill black, orange at the 

 base; a bright orange ring around the eye. 



Adult in sutmner : Toes with small webs. 



Length, 6.80 ; Wing, 4.75 ; Tarsus, .93 ; Bill, .50. 



Ranges from the Arctic regions to South 

 ./ America, breeding from Labrador northward. It 



is a common species on our coast during the migrations. The eggs are 

 usually four, pale brownish white spotted with chocolate brown. 



