DOTTEREL. 463 



the table ; those that in spring and autumn are sent to 

 the London market, find ready sale at seven or eight shil- 

 lings a couple. They are reckoned very foolish birds, 

 so that a dull fellow is proverbially called a Dotterel. 

 Authors seem to have had this latter quality in their view 

 when they called the bird morinellus, which is probably 

 derived from the Greek moros, or the Latin morio, a fool, 

 adding the diminutive, meaning a little fool. The gun has 

 long since superseded the net, as a means of obtaining 

 Dotterel ; the bird was said to imitate the actions of 

 the fowler : but its various qualities are referred to by 

 several old writers ; thus Drayton, in his Polyolbion says 



" The Dotterel, which we think a very dainty dish, 

 Whose taking makes such sport, as no man more can wish. 

 For as you creep, or cower, or lie, or stoop, or go, 

 So, marking you with care, the apish bird doth do ; 

 And acting everything, doth never mark the net, 

 Till he be in the snare which men for him have set." 



The adult bird, in its summer plumage, has the beak 

 nearly black ; the irides brown ; the top of the head and 

 nape of the neck very dark brown, bounded on the sides 

 and behind by a band of pure white ; the ear-coverts, the 

 neck and back, ash colour ; the scapulars, wing-coverts and 

 tertials, ash brown edged with buff; wing-primaries ash 

 grey, the first with a broad white shaft ; tail-feathers 

 greyish brown ; those in the middle tipped with dull white, 

 the three outside feathers with broad ends of pure white ; 

 the chin and sides of the neck white ; the front and sides 

 of the neck below ash grey ; from shoulder to shoulder, 

 across the breast, is a band of white, margined above and 

 below with a dark line ; breast rich fawn colour, passing 

 to chestnut ; belly black ; vent and under tail-coverts 

 white, tinged with buff ; under wing-coverts and axillary 



