SCHINZ'S SANDPIPEB. 53 



Male; length, six inches and a half to seven and a little 

 over, according to different measurements; bill, nearly black; 

 iris, brown; over it is a white streak, less pure in winter; 

 forehead in summer, white; head on the sides, greyish white 

 speckled on the centres of the feathers with dusky black; on 

 the crown in summer, with the feathers marked on their centres 

 with black, and on the edges with rufous, and in winter as 

 are the neck on the back and nape, grey brown streaked with 

 dusky; neck on the sides, greyish white, speckled with dusky 

 black, the dark marks being along the shafts. Chin, white; 

 throat in summer, white, in winter as is the breast on the 

 upper part, greyish white speckled with dusky, in summer with 

 deep black across it, the edges of the feathers tinged with grey, 

 on the lower part white. The back with black on the centres 

 of the feathers and with rufous edges, in winter grey brown 

 in place of rufous. 



The wings have the first quill the longest; the axillary plume 

 white. Greater and lesser wing coverts, black on the centres 

 of the feathers, with rufous edges in summer, in winter grey 

 brown edged with greyish white; primaries, brownish grey or 

 dusky black, the latter towards the tips, the inner ones more 

 or less edged and tipped with white, the shafts white; secon- 

 daries, dusky brown minutely tipped with white, and edged 

 with the same; tertiaries, long, dusky brown, margined in 

 summer with rufous, and in winter with ash grey; the quill 

 feathers underneath are ash-colour with white shafts. The tail 

 has the two middle feathers longer than the others and pointed, 

 and deep or blackish brown in colour, the others ash brown; 

 upper and under tail coverts, white. The legs, which are 

 without feathers for a considerable space above the knee, are, 

 as the toes, black, tinged with green; claws, black. 



In the young at first the plumage is a mixture of grey, 

 black, and rufous, subsequently the bill is nearly black, the 

 base pale yellowish red; the upper parts are rufous with black 

 centres to the feathers, and white tips; the breast, pale brown 

 or dingy white with large dusky spots. 



While passing from the winter to the summer plumage, 

 and back again from the latter to the former, what may be 

 called a 'neutral tint' prevails, while now the one and then 

 the other in turn is assuming the prevalence. 



