256 



WILD NATURE'S WAYS. 



RINGED PLOVER ABOUT TO WALK 

 ON TO HER EGGS. 



them, did not stand in one posture for minutes 

 together listening and thinking. Her habit was 

 to make little hurried rushes with her head down, 

 and, stopping for a second or two, dash off again, 

 as if she had forgotten something. I stayed at 

 my post for four hours on end, and after exposing 

 a goodly series of plates by the aid of my more 

 silent studio shutter upon the bird on and near 

 by her nest, crawled forth, scarcely able to walk 

 home to my friend's house. 



In a day or two both species hatched out 

 their young, and I noticed two habits apparently 

 common to them both. All egg shells were 



