Moorland Birds 



with rufous spots on the larger end. In winter 

 the birds collect in little flocks, feeding on the 

 stubble or open ground, and at this time of the 

 year the plumage is duller and the crimson on 

 the breast is obscured by broad edgings to the 

 feathers. As spring approaches these edgings 

 gradually wear off, till the crimson alone re- 

 mains, a process which may be observed in 

 many other birds, taking the place of a spring 

 moult. 



In some parts of Norfolk there are wide, un- 

 dulating stretches, unconfmed by hedges, the 

 summits of the hills being crowned by woods 

 of tall, dark Scotch firs, where Long-Eared Owls 

 nest and strew the ground beneath with their 

 pellets. The soil is sandy and sterile, supporting 

 a scanty crop of poor grass, with here and there 

 a tuft of stunted bracken, while the surface of 

 the ground is littered with flinty stones. Such 

 is the home of the Stone Curlew or Norfolk 

 Plover, a relative of the Great Bustard, which 

 became extinct as a resident in this country 

 during the second half of the last century. Of 

 late years an attempt has been made to reinstate 

 this noble bird ; may it meet with the success it 

 deserves. 



The name Stone " Curlew" is very misleading, 

 for, apart from a certain similarity in general 

 colour and marking, this bird and the Curlew 

 have nothing in common, and its true position is 



93 



