A HISTORY OF LEICESTERSHIRE 



to be one, at Swithland Reservoir, 24 Aug., 1904. 

 Bearing in mind, however, the extreme rarity of the 

 real At, curmica, I am disposed to think he shot a 

 specimen of the small Continental form of Ae. 

 hiaticuh, which often occurs in Britain. Two 

 mounted specimens of the foregoing species in the 

 museum, said to have been shot at Belgrave, are 

 erroneously attributed to Ae. curonka.] 



165. Golden Plover. Charadrius pluviaRs, Linn. 



A winter visitant and not common. Harley re- 

 marked that its appearance in this county was chiefly 

 confined to Charnwood Forest and the wild hills 

 around. Occasionally, however, it was found on the 

 meadow-lands which fringe the River Soar, such as 

 the meadows about Loughborough and Barrow. 

 T. W. Tebbs of the Union Inn, Blaby, showed me 

 one which he shot at Wigston in 1854. Turner 

 informs me that some time in 1865 he shot a golden 

 plover in winter plumage, in the Abbey Meadow. 

 I have seen in the possession of Mr. J. S. Bevins, of 

 Ingarsby Old Hall, a fine specimen which was shot 

 by his father at Wellsborough about 186570. The 

 late Dr. Macaulay recorded (Mid. Nat. 1882, p. 65) 

 its occurrence at Coleorton, Smeeton, and Gumley 

 some years since. Mr. Standbridge tells me that 

 about 1880 he saw and shot the golden plover at 

 Aston Firs. Mr. Davenport shot one at Skeffington 

 on 26 Dec., 1 88 1, and saw a flock of about fifty on 

 15 March, 1883. He also reports one killed at 

 Foxton in October, 1884. Mr. Ingram wrote: 

 ' In flocks in the winter season, in the Vale of 

 Belvoir.' Mr. W. G. Adams shot three specimens 

 on 30 Dec., 1885, in a field just oft' Saffron Lane, 

 Aylestone, and says there were sixty or more in the 

 flock. Mr. W. Brookes, writing from Croft in April, 

 1888, says : 'Golden plovers are common here in 

 winter, in times of floods ; I have shot them fre- 

 quently in the meadows. There was a flock of about 

 twenty flying over the floods when the snow melted a 

 month since.' Dr. Macaulay wrote on 29 Nov., 1889 : 

 ' To-day when snipe-shooting with my son (Tom) we 

 came across a small flock, fifteen in number, of golden 

 plover in Smeeton parish. They were in the company 

 of green plovers, were wild, and got up out of shot.' 



It occurs every year in small parties, and more 

 commonly and in larger flocks in hard weather at the 

 Sewage Farm, Beaumont Leys, where I have seen it. 



Mr. W. J. Horn saw and shot at one in the 

 Welland Valley, near Rockingham, on 28 Feb., 1900. 



1 66. Grey Plover. Squatarola helvetica (Linn.). 



A splendid male specimen of the grey plover a 

 species hitherto unrecorded for the county was pre- 

 sented to the museum by Mr. Seville, who found it 

 on the morning of 5 Dec., 1892, the bird having 

 been killed by flying against telegraph wires, near the 

 Twelve Bridges, on the canalized Soar, by Leicester. 



167. Lapwing or Peewit. Vanellus vulgaris, Bech- 



stein. 



Locally, Green Plover. 



Resident and generally distributed ; in severe 

 winters, however, it withdraws until the early spring, 

 when it is often met with in large flocks. On 4 Nov., 

 1885, lapwings were reported to be flocking in 

 meadows by the Aylestone Road Gas Works, and the 

 next day floods being out I saw several 'stands' of 



148 



some six or seven hundred or more congregated in 

 meadows opposite the Aylestone Mill. Mr. Daven- 

 port wrote: "In April, 1884, I remarked a cock 

 and two hen lapwings frequenting a ploughed field for 

 some little time ; eventually I found the two nests on 

 the same morning within ten yards of each other, 

 each nest containing four fresh eggs. I am sure there 

 was only one male bird with the two hens.' It is 

 very numerous at the Sewage Farm, Beaumont Leys. 

 Mr. W. J. Horn writes that large numbers are to be 

 seen in autumn and in mild winters in the Welland 

 Valley. On 28 Feb., 1900, he saw a ' stand ' of from 

 three to four thousand. 



1 68. Turnstone. Strff si/as interpres (Linn.). 



An accidental visitant from the coast. Mr. Turner 

 received a male and female, said to have been shot at 

 the Abbey Meadow about 1 8 80 or 1881, and I saw 

 a young one, said to have been shot in the Abbey 

 Meadow in the spring of 1 883. It appears an old one 

 was shot at the same time and place. 



1 69. Oyster-Catcher. Haematofus ostralegus, Linn. 

 Locally, Olive, Sea-pie. 



A rare and accidental straggler from the coast, 

 chiefly in spring and autumn. Harley recorded the 

 occurrence of one at Loughborough in the year 1840. 

 On 26 Sept., 1887, Mr. J. E. Hodding shot a fine 

 and nearly adult specimen of this bird in a water- 

 meadow next to the Gas Works on the Aylestone 

 Road, Leicester, which he gave to the museum. 



[Avocet. Recurvtrostra avocetta, Linn. 

 Locally, Cobbler's Awl. 



Now a rare straggler to this country, and the only 

 authority we have for its admission into the local 

 list is that of Mr. Wolley of Beeston, who saw a 

 specimen of this rare visitant while fishing near the 

 confluence of the Soar with the Trent in June, 1856. 

 It passed over his head 'giving a distinct view of its 

 upturned bill' (Zoo/. 1856, p. 5280).] 



170. Grey Phalarope. Phalanpus fulicarius (Linn.). 

 Of irregular occurrence in autumn. Harley stated 



that during the autumn of 1841 and the following 

 winter many birds were captured throughout the 

 county. The species occurred again in the autumn of 

 1846, and also in December, 1853, when a fine speci- 

 men was shot by Mr. Bloxam at Twycross. More- 

 over, towards the close of 1854 it appeared at Foxton, 

 where one was shot on the canal which passes through 

 that village. The late Dr. Macaulay recorded (Mid. 

 Nat. 1 882, p. 10) one, killed by the late Rev. H. Mat- 

 thews at Foxton, in the winter of 1860-1, and then 

 in the possession of the Rev. A. Matthews. The late 

 Mr. Widdowson told me that he had received two or 

 three specimens killed near Melton Mowbray. In 

 1887 I saw, in the possession of Mr. J. S. Bevins, of 

 Ingarsby Old Hall, an example shot by his father at 

 Wellsborough, fifteen or twenty years previously ; and 

 Mr. Richard Naylor, Thrussington, found one dead 

 in May, 1864, on some plough-land near Cressington 

 Fox-covert, on the Old Fosse Road, which he gave 

 to the museum. ' In 1 868 one was killed near Leices- 

 ter by striking telegraph wires ' (T. Walker in Zool. 

 1868, p. 1212). The late Rev. A. Matthews in- 

 formed me that a grey phalarope in winter plumage 

 was shot by Mr. E. T. Turner near Saddington 



