PLOVER SHOOTING 



of streams and ponds. The golden plover, 

 called also the yellow or green plover, come 

 in the spring and autumn in large flocks. 

 They fly swiftly, and mass close together, 

 over stretches of burned prairie, meadows, 

 and newly ploughed ground, and are the most 

 eagerly sought after of all the plover kind. 

 A golden plover is a compactly built and 

 hardy bird, about seven inches long and 

 weighing from six to seven ounces. The 

 back is black, spotted with white and span- 

 gled with golden specks. Their call is short 

 and musical. They are not easily approached 

 on foot, but are not afraid of a buggy or 

 wagon, and many are killed by driving up 

 on them with a horse that is used to guns, 

 and shooting them as they rise. One of the 

 best ways to hunt them is to put out " stools," 

 as they are called, or wooden decoys, and 

 shoot from a rough " blind." These decoys 

 are painted to resemble golden plover, and 

 the legs are represented by a single peg, 

 which may be stuck into the ground so as to 

 keep the body upright. If a " flight," as it 

 is called, or, more properly speaking, a suc- 

 cession of flocks of the birds, fly over the 

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