NUMENIUS 803 



lores, eye-streak, cheeks, and ear-coverts white marked with fine lines and 

 specks of black ; throat pure white ; under parts white, the lower throat 

 and breast with central brown streaks, the sides of the breast with large 

 pear-shaped spots ; under wing-coverts and axillaries pure white ; bill 

 brown, the base of lower mandible flesh-coloured ; legs plumbeous grey ; 

 iris brown. Culmen 275, wing 9'3, tail 3'8, tarsus 21 inch. Sexes 

 alike. 



Hal. Southern Europe, of rare occurrence in Central Europe 

 but has been obtained in Holland, Belgium, and France ; 

 North Africa, ranging south to Khartoum ; to the east it is 

 found in Transcaspia, where it probably breeds. 



In habits this Curlew is said to differ from N. arquatus in 

 frequenting marshy localities and often wading up to the 

 belly in water. Respecting its nidification nothing definite 

 appears to be known. 



1107. COMMON CURLEW. 

 NUMENIUS ARQUATUS. 



Numenlus arquatus (Linn.), Syst. Nat. i. p. 242 (1766) ; Naum. viii. 

 p. 478, Taf. 216 ; Hewitson, ii. p. 322, pi. Ixxxvii. fig. 2 ; Gould, 

 B. of E. iv. pi. 302 ; id. B. of Gt. Brit. iv. pi. 48 ; Dresser, viii. p. 243, 

 pi. 578 ; Seebohm, B. Jap. Emp. p. 314 ; Sharpe, Cat. B. Br. Mus. 

 xxiv. p. 341 ; Tacz. F. 0. Sib. 0. p. 938 ; Blanf. F. Brit. Ind. Birds, 

 iv. p. 252 ; Saunders, p. 629 ; Lilford, v. p. 131, pi. 57 ; Poynting, 

 p. 243, pis. 51, 52 ; N. lineatus, Cuv. Regne Anim. i. p. 521 (1829) ; 

 David and Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 457. 



Courtis, French ; Magarico real, Portug. ; Zarapito redl, Span. ; 

 Chiurlo, Ital. ; Grosser Brachvogel, German ; Wulp, Dutch ; 

 Stor-Rvgnspove, Dan. ; Stor-Spove, Norweg. ; Storspof, Swed. ; 

 Iso-kiwvi, Finn. ; Kulik-kotrous, Bolschoi-Kronschnep, Russ. ; 

 Goar-Goungh, Hindu. 



(J ad. (Sweden). Upper parts, head, and neck blackish brown with 

 dirty white and pale fulvous margins to the feathers, some tinged with 

 rufous ; lower back and rump white with a few scattered drop-shaped 

 spots ; upper tail-coverts white slightly barred with brown and marked 

 with rufous ; tail white barred with blackish brown, the middle feathers 

 tinged with ashy grey ; quills blackish brown ; shafts of outer ones white ; 

 chin, upper throat, and region round the eye white ; rest of under parts 

 white, the neck, breast, abdomen, and under tail-coverts narrowly, the 

 flanks boldly striped with blackish brown ; under wing-coverts and 

 axillaries mottled or more or less barred with brown ; bill dull fleshy 

 at base, otherwise dark brown ; legs plumbeous grey ; iris brown. 

 Culmen 5'0, wing 11*6, tail 4'9, tarsus 3'0 inch. Female similar. 



3 G 



