WILSON PLOVER (Ockthodromus wil- 

 sonius) . This species differs from the "Ring- 

 neck" most noticeably in the large size of 

 the wholly black bill and the broader black 

 band across the breast. It is also slightly 

 larger, measuring a little under 8 in. in 

 length. 



They breed along the South Atlantic and 

 Gulf coasts from Virginia to Texas and casu- 

 ally wander to New England and also to 

 southern California. Their notes are quite 

 different from those of other closely allied 

 species, the call note being more of a chirp 

 than a whistle, and their notes of anger, deliv- 

 ered freely when one is in the vicinity of their 

 nests, are excited chippering whistles. They 

 match the color of their surrounding almost 

 perfectly and, as might be expected, usually 

 trust to their plumage to escape detection 

 as they sit upon their eggs in slight depres- 

 sions in the sand. 



MOUNTAIN PLOVER (Podasocys mon- 

 tanus). These birds can be regarded as 

 "mountain" only in that they are often 

 found at high altitudes, but on arid plains 

 they are often known as "Prairie Plover," a 

 name that is in reality better suited to them, 

 for they spend most of their time on the 

 prairies picking up grasshoppers and other 

 insects. In summer they are to be found 

 distributed in scattered pairs, but in fall they 

 unite in flocks of some size. They breed in western United States from Mon- 

 tana and Nebraska south to Texas and New Mexico and winter from the 

 southwestern states through Mexico. 



SURF BIRD (Aphriza mrgatd). This comparatively rare and little known 

 bird, called the "Plover- 

 billed Turnstone " wanders 

 along the Pacific coast from 

 Alaska to Chile. Its nest 

 and eggs have not as yet 

 been definitely reported, but 

 it is believed to breed in 

 the interior of northwestern 

 Alaska. ^V^cWvvcusAovxe Sui 



WILSON PLOVER 

 MOUNTAIN PLOVER 



44 



