MOUNTAIN PLOVER 



281. Podasocys montanus. 9 in. 



No black on breast or sides, but with black band on 

 top of head and a black line from bill to eye. Above 

 grayish-brown; below buffy across the breast, white else- 

 where. Mountain or Prairie Plover, as they are often 

 and better called, are abundant on the western prairies. 

 Like the Bartramian Sandpiper, they do not frequent 

 the vicinity of water, but live and get their food in the 

 dry grass-covered districts. They are not at all shy 

 where they are not hunted. Like all the family, they 

 are very fleet on foot, and may often be seen chasing 

 grasshoppers or other active insects. Their flight is 

 very rapid, often devious and usually at a low elevation. 



Notes. A single, low, musical whistle. 



Nest. A depression in the ground, anywhere on the 

 prairie. Eggs brownish-gray, blotched with blackish. 



Range. West of the Mississippi River, breeding north 

 to Dakota. Winters from Southwestern United States 

 southward. 



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