BRITISH BIRDS. 71 



about the vent it is quite white : the lower part of 

 the back is also white. The rump, and tail feathers, 

 are barred with black and white; shafts of the 

 quills white, the outer webs black, but the inner 

 ones marked with large white spots : the secondary 

 quills are spotted in the same manner on both the 

 inner and outer webs. The legs and feet are of the 

 same shape and colour as those of the Curlew. 



It is not so commonly seen on the sea-shores of 

 this country as the Curlew; it is also more retired 

 and wild, ascending to the highest mountain heaths 

 in spring and summer to breed. 



The yearlings have the bill scarcely an inch and 

 a half long : it becomes more and more curved as 

 the bird increases in size. In the mature state it 

 measures three inches, and sometimes more. They 

 are met with in almost every country of Europe, 

 Asia, and America, but breed chiefly in northern 

 regions ; they lay four eggs, pear-shaped, blotched 

 with brown, on an olive-coloured ground. 



