132 



FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS. 



white; the upper tail-coverts are bluish-grey, lower tail- 

 coverts, white ; legs are long and slender, and, like the toes 

 and claws, are black. 



The female differs considerably in plumage from her 

 mate, and is by no means of so striking an appearance, being 

 of a rusty brown colour on the upper part of the body and 

 greyish- white underneath. 



The young birds bear a general resemblance to the 

 female, and do not gain the above adult plumage until the 

 second moult, which takes place about the following 

 January. 



