THE GOLDEN PLOVER. 



the 



HE Golden Plover is undoubtedly 

 the handsomest of the some- 

 what large tribe to which it be- 

 longs, and is subject, at different 

 periods of its existence, to some 

 considerable variations in the 

 appearance of its plumage. Vast 

 flocks of these birds are met with 

 during the winter months on the 

 moors, downs, large flat fields, 

 and sea-coasts of our southern 

 counties; whilst in some parts 

 of Scotland, and in the northern 

 parts of England, their numbers 

 would appear to be almost in- 

 credible. In Europe, the Golden 

 Plover is distributed over most 

 of the countries, visiting the 

 higher latitudes in the summer, 

 and the southern parts of France 

 and Italy in the winter. They 

 breed on the Dartmoor hills, in 

 Devonshire, in some parts of 

 Cornwall, and very plentifully in 

 Orkneys, Shetland, and Hebrides. 

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