TURNS TOM: 293 



in autumn ; on the south and west coasts many remain all winter. 

 The return migration to the breeding-grounds in the arctic -regions 

 takes place about the middle of May ; but it is believed that a few 

 pairs breed annually within the limits of the British Islands, as 

 birds have been observed in summer in full nuptial dress. There 

 are few birds with so wide a distribution as the turnstone, its range 

 extending along the coasts of Europe, Asia, Africa, North and South 

 America, Australia, and the Atlantic and Pacific islands. 



The turnstone is a bird of the seashore exclusively, with a par- 

 tiality for rocky coasts, and feeds on marine insects and small 

 crustaceans, which it picks from the stranded seaweed, and on this 

 account it is called ' tangle-picker ' on the Norfolk coast. It also 

 turns over the small stones and shells on the sand, to search for 

 insects concealed beneath them ; and when the stone is too large 

 to be moved by the bill, the breast is used in pushing. Two or 

 three birds have been observed to unite in pushing over an object 

 too large to be moved by one. 



Oyster-catcher. 



Hnematopus ostralegus. 



Plumage intense black and pure white ; bill orange -yellow : 

 irides crimson ; legs and feet purplish pink. Length, sixteen 

 inches. 



The oyster-catcher, or sea-magpie, is regarded by many persons 

 as the most beautiful of our shore -birds. When seen running on 

 the sands with a rapid, trotting gait, or standing motionless a pied 

 bird with thick, orange-red bill and pink legs, the large head drawn 

 in his appearance strikes one as singular rather than beautiful. No 

 sooner does he take to flight, exhibiting the sharp-pointed, wonder- 

 fully conspicuous, black and white wings, than the beauty is 

 revealed. The flight is rapid, and as he wheels round the intruder 

 in a wide circle he utters a succession of cries, somewhat like those 

 of the golden plover and curlew in character, but shriller and more 

 vehement. The oyster-catcher is a resident species, to be met 

 with throughout the year in all suitable localities on the coasts of 

 Great Britain and Ireland. He is most partial to rocky coasts with 

 patches of sand and shingle, his food consisting chiefly of small 

 -shellfish left exposed on and among the rocks at low water. With 



