DUCK TRIBE 35 



in colouring to that of the dunlin. In habits the dunlin (T. alpina) closely 



resembles the curlew-sandpiper, but is of much more common occurrence. Its 



breeding-area extends to the Arctic Circle and throughout Siberia from west to 



■east. The nest is a mere depression amid heather or rushes, or on a dry patch in 



grass. The young, which are hatched in sixteen days, run as soon as their down 



is dry, when they are taken by their parents to grassy or muddy ground to search 



for the worms and insects which form their principal food. The dunlin appears in 



great numbers on the shores and islands of the Baltic, and still more numerously 



•on those of the North Sea, as well as on the shores of the Mediterranean, which it 



•crosses into Africa, where it goes as far south as Zanzibar. During migration it 



is found everywhere on inland lakes, ponds, marshes, and rivers, but not in sucli 



large numbers as on the seashore, where these birds follow the tide out and in, 



sleeping while it is at flood. When disturbed they fly in circles out to sea, their 



flight being peculiar and characteristic owing to the moderate expansion of the 



wings. In its summer dress, with the coal-black shield on its white breast, the 



dunlin is one of the handsomest of the sandpipers. It is about 7 inches in length 



and in colour rusty brown with dark markings above, and white below, the tail 



being light brown with white shafts and narrow white fringes to the feathers, and 



the beak and legs black. 



In addition to the golden plover, the group of plovers is represented in Siberia 



by several kinds, northern Siberia being the home of the dotterel and little 



ringed plover. The breeding-area of the European lapwing extends through 



Siberia as far as Kamchatka; and ranging across more to the south is found 



the thicknee. 



Swans, geese, and ducks abound in Siberia, but all belong to 

 Duck Tribe. . . , 



species already noticed. Of the former, Bewick's swan and the 



whooper, although birds of the far north, also inhabit Siberia along the southern 



boundary of the tundra, while the mute swan is found on all the larger lakes. 



The geese need no special mention, and the same is the case with many of the 



ducks ; among the latter the wild duck, shoveller, gadwall, wigeon, pintail, and 



teal are species indigenous not only to the north of the Old World but also to 



North America, all of them breeding in Siberia. 



The sickle-winged duck (Eunetta falcata), which visits eastern Siberia and 

 Japan, is not indigenous to Europe, although said to have been shot in solitary 

 places in Bohemia and Hungary. It is most common from Lake Baikal and the 

 Yenesei eastwards, where it arrives in April, while it winters in more southern 

 countries, especially China and Japan. This duck, which is found in the Stanovoi 

 Mountains, is about 18 inches long, and is distinguished by its five long narrow 

 shoulder-feathers, which are bent like a sickle, as well as by a mane-like tuft on 

 the nape. The head is of a copper hue, the neck white with a bright green ring, 

 the body marked with black and white lines, the tail yellow on each side with 

 black upper and lower coverts, and the wings grey with a wide black speculum. 



A number of the diving ducks also frequent Siberia; among them the 

 harlequin-duck, the long-tailed duck, and the scaup range from the tundra down to 

 the true Siberian area. The golden-eye and the tufted duck are found all through 

 Siberia from west to east, while the pochard is indigenous to the warmer districts. 



