88 TOTANINJE. HIMANTOPUS. 



Male, 18, . ., 9J, 3J, 2^, 1 T ^, T V 



The Avoset, now of rare occurrence in any part of Britain, 

 is said to breed in the fens of Lincolnshire, and in Romney 

 Marsh, in Kent. It is not migrator} 7 , but, assembling in 

 small nocks, in winter, frequents the shores and estuaries of 

 the south-eastern coasts of England, and feeds on worms, in- 

 sects, and mollusca, which it obtains by an alternating, la- 

 teral motion of the bill among the soft mud. The use of its 

 webs seems to be chiefly to support it on the yielding surface. 

 It wades out in the water, runs with rapidity, vibrates its 

 body when standing, has a powerful flight, and a loud shrill 

 cry, and is said to resemble the Totani and other birds of this 

 family, in its attempts to decoy intruders from its nest or 

 young. 



Scooper. Crooked-bill. Cobler's awl. Yelper. 



Recurvirostra Avocetta, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. 156. Recur- 

 virostra Avocetta, Lath. Ind. Ornith, ii. 786. Recurvirostra 

 Avocetta, Temm. Man. d'Ornith. ii. 590. Recurvirostra 

 Avocetta, Black-and-white Avoset, MacGillivray, Brit. Birds, 



GENUS GIL HIMANTOPUS. STILT-SHANK. 



The importance of the hind toe in the Grallatorial series 

 has been much overrated, otherwise the Himantopi, which 

 in all essential respects are most intimately connected with 

 the Totani and Recurvirostrse, would never have been placed 

 in connection with the Plovers, with which they have but a 

 very distant affinity. These birds are of a singularly slen- 

 der form, with legs so extremely elongated, as at once to 

 suggest the idea of a bird walking on stilts. The body, 

 however, is rather compact and o v r ate ; but the neck is very 

 long and slender ; the head small, compressed, and much 

 rounded above. Bill about twice the length of the head, 

 almost straight, being very slightly recurved, very slender, 

 roundish, tapering ; upper mandible with the ridge convex, 

 the nasal groove extending half its length, the edges sharp 

 and inflected, the tip very narrow, rather acute, and slightly 

 decurvate ; lower mandible with the angle long and ex- 

 tremely narrow, the sides grooved nearly as far as the angle, 

 the edges sharp and inflected, the tip extremely narrow, and 

 just at the end turned a little upwards. Mouth very nar- 





