THE BIRD-LIFE OF LONDON 



spending its time daintily tripping round the margin of 

 pools or alongside rivers, streams, and canals. It is not 

 very shy, and often allows an observer to watch its active 

 movements within a few yards. It runs to and fro 

 very quickly, pausing now and then and beating its tail 

 up and down like a Wagtail. When alarmed it flies off 

 uttering a shrill weet, and with long wings striking the 

 surface settles again in a quieter spot. Like the Swallow 

 it returns yearly to some particular place to breed, and 

 passes the same spots each year on its annual migrations. 

 In the love season the male utters a trilling note, often 

 soaring whilst doing so. Its food consists of insects and 

 larvae, worms, crustaceans and other minute marine 

 creatures, together with small ground fruits. It com- 

 mences to breed in May, and eggs may be found during 

 that month and June. The nest is a simple little affair 

 on or near to the waterside, a hollow lined with vegetable 

 fragments. The four eggs are pale buff, blotched and 

 spotted with reddish brown of various shades and violet 

 grey. The young and their parents keep in company, 

 and as autumn advances small flocks assemble. 



The adult Common Sandpiper has the general colour 

 of the upper parts mouse-brown, with a greenish or 

 bronze sheen, most of the small feathers having a dark 

 central streak ; the wing-coverts, innermost secondaries, 

 scapulars, and upper tail-coverts are barred with darker 

 brown ; the greater wing-coverts are tipped with white, 

 and the white bases to most of the brown quills form 

 a wing-bar, very conspicuous during flight ; the tail is 

 light brown, with a green cast, the three outermost 

 feathers on each side being barred with brownish black 

 and white ; the under parts are mostly white, suffused 

 with brown on the sides of the breast, and streaked with 

 darker brown on the fore-neck and breast. Bill dark 

 brown, paler at the base ; tarsi and toes pale olive ; 

 irides brown. Length 8 inches. The young in first 

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