THE GODWITS. 311 



those on the outer tail-feathers considerably broken up ; lower 

 back, rump, and upper tail-coverts pure white with a few 

 arrow-head-shaped markings and bars, more distinct on the 

 upper tail-coverts ; head and neck light ashy-brown, streaked 

 with lines of darker brown, the sides of the face speckled with 

 light-brown ; under surface of body pure white, with a few 

 streaks of brown on the lower throat, sides of breast, and sides 

 of body, where the streaks take the form of arrow-head-shaped 

 markings; on the chest a few obsolete dusky cross-bars; 

 axillaries and under-wing coverts white, the former with twin 

 spots of blackish-brown ; the centre tail-feathers ashy-brown 

 with a few remains of darker brown mottlings, the rest of the 

 feathers notched and barred with white on the inner webs, and 

 usually uniform on the outer webs. 



Young Birds. Resemble the adults in winter plumage, but 

 are much more fulvescent, and especially of an ashy-fulvous 

 shade over the lower throat and chest, and more decidedly 

 fulvous on the sides of the body. The* whole of the upper 

 surface is mottled with rufous-buff in the shape of tawny 

 notches to most of the feathers, and the whole of the tail is 

 regularly barred across with dusky-brown and buffy-whitish, 

 the bands being about seven in number. 



Range in Great Britain. Although the present species does 

 not breed in Great Britain, it passes on migration in con- 

 siderable numbers, especially in autumn. It is, however, some- 

 what local in its distribution, for while this Godwit is found in 

 winter sparingly in the eastern and southern counties of Eng- 

 land, Mr. Abel Chapman has observed it in thousands on the 

 coast of Northumberland, even in very severe weather. On 

 the return migration in spring it is often seen in the south- 

 eastern counties of England, and as far north as Norfolk ; but 

 it becomes rarer in Scotland, on the west coast of which country 

 it is very local, though it is tolerably plentiful in Ireland during 

 autumn and winter, receiving ah accession of numbers in the 

 spring, particularly on the west coast. (Cf. Saunders, " Manual," 

 p. 607.) 



Range outside the British Islands. The Bar-tailed Godwit 

 breeds as far west as Finland and Lapland, and occurs as 

 far east as the Yenesei Valley. In winter it migrates to the 



