456 SANDPIPERS AND RELATED SPECIES 



bents and dead grasses, and may be found on rough pasture, or tussocks in marshes, 

 among heather, or on burnt patches of moorland. Probably the scanty material 

 is collected by the hen, but observations on this point seem to be wanting. (PL LVII.) 

 The eggs are normally 4 in number, but several clutches of 5 are on record, and 3 

 are not uncommon in second layings. They are very large, broad pyrif orm in shape, 

 and placed with converging points. The ground-colour ranges from light green 

 to olive-green or olive-brown, but exceptionally eggs of clear blue-green without 

 spots have been met with. The normal markings are blotches of light or dark 

 umber-brown with underlying light ashy-brown shellmarkings. (PL N.) Average 

 size of 80 eggs, 2*65 x T86 in. [67'4x47'3 mm.]. Both sexes take part in incuba- 

 tion, though the female appears to take the greater share of the work, and a male 

 shot by Slater showed no hatching-spots. In an incubator the eggs hatched early 

 on the 30th day (W. Evans). The breeding season is about the third week of 

 April in England and Wales, though exceptionally eggs have been found early 

 in April even in the north. In the Shetlands, however, the usual time is from 

 mid-May onward to the end of June, though eggs have been taken exceptionally 

 on 2nd May. Only one brood is reared in the season. [F. o. R. J.] 



5. Food. Insects of various kinds and their larvae, earthworms, snails, 

 slugs and other molluscs, and berries. The Rev. H. H. Slater states that it is 

 fond of the fruit of crowberry Empetrum (British Birds, their Nests and Eggs, 

 v. p. 174), and Professor Patten quotes instances of blackberries being eaten in 

 large quantities. Qne stomach examined was filled with this fruit, the juice of 

 which had stained the intestine (Aquatic Birds, p. 363). On the shore they are 

 very fond of small mussels and other molluscs and sand-worms, and, in fact, almost 

 any moderate-sized invertebrate animal. Swallows sand and grit. The young feed 

 chiefly on insects and their larvse, and they are accompanied and no doubt aided 

 in their search for the same by both parents, [w. F.] 



WHIMBREL [Numenius ph&opus (Linnaeus). May-bird, half-curlew, seven- 

 whistlers, jack-curlew, curlew-knave, peterel, titterel ; sprowe (Norfolk) ; 

 curlew-whilp (Lanes.) ; tang or peerie-whaup (Shetlands) ; checker and 

 checkerel (Somerset) ; little-whaup (Orkneys). French, courlis courlieu ; 

 German, Regen-Brachvogel ; Italian, chiurlo piccolo], 



i. Description. The whimbrel is to be distinguished from the curlew 

 chiefly by its much smaller size and the median whitish band down the crown. 



