THE GREY PLOVER. 139 



outer web also ; the secondaries brown, edged and tipped with 

 white, the bases of the inner webs also white ; the innermost 

 secondaries like the back ; lower back and rump dusky-brown, 

 with white spots and fringes on the feathers ; upper tail-coverts 

 and tail feathers white, barred with black or blackish-brown, 

 the bars decreasing towards the outer feathers, being broken 

 up into spots on the outer web ; crown of head like the back, 

 but more hoary-white and less spotted with black ; forehead 

 and a broad eyebrow white, extending down the sides of the 

 neck, and forming a large patch on the sides of the uppei 

 breast ; lores, side of face, ear-coverts, and under surface of 

 body black, excepting the abdomen and under tail-coverts, 

 which are pure white ; under wing-coverts white ; axillaries 

 black ; quills below dusky, white on the inner webs ; lower 

 primary-coverts pale ashy ; bill, feet, and claws black ; iris 

 dark hazel. Total length, 10*5 inches; culmen, 1*3; wing, 

 8'i ; tail, 2*9; tarsus, i'8. 



Adult Female. Similar to the male, but never quite so much 

 spangled with black on the upper surface, so that the general 

 appearance is somewhat browner ; the black on the face and 

 under parts is never so much developed, and consequently 

 these parts are never so uniform black, but are more mottled 

 with black than the male. Total length, 1 1 inches ; culmen, 

 1-3; wing, 8'o ; tail, 2^9; tarsus, r8. 



Winter Plumage. The chief difference between the summer 

 and winter dress of the Grey Plover lies in the absence of 

 black on the face and breast during the latter season. The 

 whole upper surface is more uniform ashy-brown, the feathers 

 edged with whitish, and having a sub-terminal blackish shade ; 

 lores and an indistinct eyebrow white ; ear-coverts dingy- 

 black ; sides of face white, streaked with dusky ; throat and 

 under-parts white, the lower throat and fore-neck pale ashy- 

 brown, slightly mottled with dusky markings ; under wing- 

 coverts white ; axillaries black, 



Young Birds. Resemble the adults in winter plumage, but are 

 spangled with golden-buff above, so that they resemble the 

 Golden Plover, from which, however, the Grey Plover can 

 always be distinguished, at any age, by its black axillaries. 



Eange outside the British Islands. Although a certain number 



