KEY TO THE WATER 15IRUS OF FLORIDA. 



293 



land coast as a rule. A few years ago there was a great flight of these 

 birds along the coast of Massachusetts in December, and hundreds of 

 them were sent to market and sold. 1 killed several near Ilyannis, Mass., 

 at that time. 



/Egialites vocifera. 



Tlie Killdeer is a common bird in Florida, 

 white mottled and lined with chocolate brown. 



The eggs are pale brownish 



Subgenus ^EGIALITIS Boie. 



/CQIALITIS SEMIPALHATA BoHa/>. 

 Semipalmated Plover. Ring=neck. 



Adult : Forehead white, succeeded by a band of black ; rest 

 of head, back, and wings ashy gray ; a dull stripe of blackish 

 passing from the bill under the eye to the sides of the neck : a 

 small patch of white back of the eye ; a broad band of black on 

 the breast ; rest of under parts white ; throat white, extending 

 J^^"~^-'^- around the neck and joining at the back in a very narrow 



^Jjji^^--- stripe ; secondaries tipped with white ; bill black, orange at the 



^^B^- • base; a bright orange ring around the eye. 



^^R_^ Adult in smniiier : Toes with small webs. 



tIP^R^ Length, 6.80 ; Wing, 4.75 : Tarsus, .93 ; Bill, .50. 



• Ranges from the Arctic regions to South 



. / America, breeding from Labrador northward. It 



is a common species on our coast during the migrations. The eggs are 

 usually four, pale brownish white spotted with chocolate brown. 



