TURNSTONE. 109 



green. Throat and chest bluish black. Under parts white. 

 Tail white, tipped with black. Tail-coverts chestnut. Bill 

 black. Legs and feet reddish. Length 12 in. Female : 

 smaller crest, and duller ; in winter both sexes have white 

 throat. Young : no black on throat, and white areas of head 

 buffish. Nestling: covered with down, mottled with buff and 

 black, white below. As with other Plovers, the young are 

 soon able to run after emerging from the egg. 



Language. The familiar " Pee-a-wit," often heard by night 

 as well as by day. 



Habits. More sociable in winter than in summer. It runs 

 nimbly. When disturbed from the nest, the female slips off 

 her eggs, and runs some distance before taking to wing. The 

 male becomes most excited, and dashes about in the air like a 

 mad thing. The parents may feign death or injury if the eggs 

 or young are in danger. Flight peculiar, being jerky, and the 

 blunt, recurvate wings produce a noise much like a winnowing 

 machine. When showing off to the female, the cock-bird 

 makes a series of false nests by turning himself round on the 

 ground as though on a pivot, 



Food. Insects, worms, slugs, &c. 



Nest. April. One brood. 



Site. On the bare ground, usually unsheltered, sometimes 

 on grass, sometimes on ploughed land. 



Materials. A few grasses, bents, and roots. 



Eggs. Four. Olive-green, stone-colour, or buffish brown, 

 well spotted and blotched with brownish black. Pyriform 

 shape. 



TURNSTONE (Strepsilas interpres). 



An autumn and winter visitor from circumpolar regions. 

 Considerable numbers spend the winter with us in the South 

 and West. 



Haunts. Rocky sea-coasts. 



Plumage. Head, neck, breast, and shoulders variegated 

 with black and white. Mantle streaked with chestnut and 

 black, giving "tortoise-shell colouring." Rump white and 

 conspicuous. Tail dark brown ; under parts white. Bill black. 

 Legs and feet orange-red. Length 9 in. Female, slightly 

 larger and duller. In autumn both sexes lose much of the 

 chestnut colouring. Young : forehead and cheeks brown, 

 collar dark brown ; feathers of back tipped with dingy white. 



Language. A clear whistle ; also a twittering or chuckling, 

 uttered when on the wing. Usually rather silent. 



Habits. When feeding it has a curious habit of turning over 

 stones with its bill, sometimes aided by its breast, to find 

 insects or other small creatures lurking there. 



