THE GOLDEN PLOVER 281 



The stone curlew \ 

 The dotterel [ Spring to autumn. 



Migratory The Kentish plover) 



The gray plover) 



-PI vAutumn to spring. 



The turnstone j 



Next to the peewit, the golden plover is, per- 

 haps, that variety most generally distributed 

 throughout Britain. Although a resident, many 

 of these birds shift their quarters in the autumn, 

 moving southwards, and retiring northwards again 

 in the spring, some remaining to breed in the 

 Southern counties. Their habits much resemble 

 those of the peewit, moving about in flocks ; but 

 their cry is different, partaking more of the 

 character of a whistle. The plumage of this bird 

 is subject to a very remarkable change. During 

 summer the chin, throat, breast, and belly are 

 black, the upper parts also very dark and spotted 

 with yellow. This colouring is in the winter 

 replaced by brown above spotted with yellow, 

 the under parts being nearly white. The gray 

 plover is also very similar in plumage to the 

 golden plover, and undergoes a similar trans- 

 formation, with this exception, viz., that the upper 

 parts are spotted with white instead of yellow in 

 winter ; in spring they are white, barred with 

 black. 



I was fortunate in obtaining two excellent speci- 

 mens of the golden plover in winter dress, male 

 and female, with a ' right and left,' a few years 

 ago when partridge-shooting in Hampshire. I 



