286 OUTDOOR LIFE IN ENGLAND 



flies are infinitely truer to nature than formerly. 

 There must, of course, be a reason for the pre- 

 sent scarcity of the dotterel, but what that reason 

 may be 1 am not prepared to suggest. The 

 fact remains, and it is one to be deplored. I 

 should suppose that it is far more likely to be 

 due to the increasing number of 'pot-hunters,' 

 and the well-known tameness of the bird, which 

 admits of its being easily approached, and so 

 offering itself an easy mark. The majority of 

 these birds which still elect to take up their abode 

 with us during the warmer months of the year 

 are to be found in Scotland, chiefly in the High- 

 lands, some few being occasionally seen on the 

 sea-coasts of England during the periods of their 

 migration. It is said to be esteemed a delicacy 

 as an article of food, but as I have never had any 

 experience of its edible qualities, and hope I never 

 may at all events during its present scarcity I 

 am unable to corroborate the assertion. 



The Kentish plover is another member of the 

 plover tribe which is becoming annually more 

 and more scarce. As I have before remarked, 

 the plumage of this bird is very similar to that of 

 the ringed plover, except that the collarette of 

 black, so noticeable in the ringed plover, is inter- 

 rupted by the white breast. It takes its name 

 from its having been formerly common in Kent, 

 although it was by no means rare in other locali- 

 ties, viz., Sussex, Yorkshire, Devonshire, Corn- 

 wall, and in some of the Channel Islands. 



