THE SAND-PLOVERS. 163 



base of forehead, lores, feathers above and below the eye, and 

 ear-coverts black ; a broad frontal band of white, followed by 

 another band of black above the eye, which is again succeeded 

 by another black line, which widens out above the eye and 

 forms a distinct eyebrow; hinder crown as far as the nape 

 ashy-brown ; round the neck a broad white collar, continuous 

 with the white throat, and followed by a broad band of black on 

 the lower hind-neck, continued right across the fore-neck, and 

 widening out on the sides ; cheeks, throat, and under surface 

 of body pure white, including the under wing-coverts and axil- 

 laries; bill dusky-black; feet flesh-colour; iris dusky-brown; 

 rim round the eye bright yellow. Total, 6 - 8 inches; culmen, 

 0*6; wing, 4*6; tail, 2*35 ; tarsus, ro; middle tee and claw, 

 0-8. 



Adult Female. Similar to the male, but with the markings 

 not so well developed, especially the black markings of the 

 face and the bands on the hind-neck and fore-neck, the latter 

 being much mixed with brown ; bill black ; feet pale flesh- 

 colour; iris dark brown; ring round the eye bright yellow. 

 Total length, 6 '5 inches ; wing, 4*6. 



Young. Differs from the adult in wanting the black on the 

 head as well as the black collars on the mantle and fore-neck. 

 The general tone of the plumage is more rufescent than in the 

 adults, and the whole of the upper surface is varied with wavy 

 lines of pale sandy-buff, before which a sub-terminal dusky bar ; 

 the forehead is pale sandy-buff; ear-coverts dusky-blackish. The 

 collar on the fore-neck is composed of brown feathers, generally 

 with a tinge of sandy-buff on the throat. The black markings on 

 the head and the black collars are gained by a moult in the 

 following spring. There appears to me to be also a change of 

 feather, especially on the neck-collar. 



Characters. The Little Ringed Sand-Plover is a decidedly 

 smaller bird than the Ringed Sand-Plover (sE. hiaticola\ and 

 has a black bill with only a little yellow on the base of the lower 

 mandible. The wing does not exceed five inches in length. It 

 can also be distinguished by the white shaft being found only on 

 the first primary. This last character will serve to denote the 

 species at all ages. 



Range in Great Britain. A rare visitor, of which Mr. Howard 



M 



