The Common Sasdpiper.- 



-BIGDS. 



-The Stilt. 



417 



ashy-brown, with the primaries nearly black, the rump 

 white and the tail barred with gray ; the lower surface 

 is white, with a few dusky streaks. In summer the 

 back and especially the wings are spotted with brown- 

 ish-black, and the lower surface is streaked and spotted 

 with black. The bill is dark-red with the tip black, 

 and the feet are red. During the winter the Redshanks 

 are seen in flocks on the sea-shore, seeking small marine 

 animals by probing with their bills into the wet sand 

 and mud ; for the breeding season they resort to inland 

 marshes, moors, and heaths. The nest is composed of 

 a little coaree grass. Like many other wading birds 

 the Eedshank swims with'facility. 



THE COMMON SANDPIPER {Totanus hjpoleucus) is 

 a summer visitor to this country, arriving in April and 

 taking its departure again in September. It is also 

 known as the Summer Snipe. It is about seven inches 

 and a half in length ; its colour above is greenish- 

 brown, with a blackish bar on each feather; the pri- 

 maries are nearly black ; the breast is a pale-ash colour 

 streaked with black, and the rest of the lower surfoce 

 pure white. This is a lively and active little bird, 

 which frequents the margins of our rivers, lakes, and 

 ponds, where it runs nimbly along on the gravel and 

 mud, seeking for worms and insects. It is rarely seen 

 on the coast. Its nest is composed of a little moss and 

 a few dry leaves in the immediate vicinity of water; 

 generally in a hole of the bank under the shelter of a 

 tuft of rushes or grass, or at the root of a tree. Tlie 

 eggs are four in number. This species swims well, 

 and even the young birds before they are able to Hy 

 will take to the water when threatened with any danger. 

 They can even dive with facility and remain under 

 water for a considerable time, coming up at a distance 

 from the place where tliey went down ; they are said 

 to progress under water by the agency of their wings. 



THE GREENSHANK {Totanus Glottis) is another 

 migratory species, which makes its appearance with 

 us chiefly in the spring and autumn on its journey to 

 and from the high northern latitudes in which it prefers 

 to breed. Some specimens, however, remain with us 

 through the summer, especially in the northern parts 

 of Scotland. It is of an ashy-brown colour above, 

 with the edges of most of the feathers buffy-white ; 

 the primaries are black and the tail white, barred or 

 striped with brown,; and the lower surface is white, 

 with the neck and breast, and the sides under the 

 wings, marked with ash-coloured streaks. The bill is 

 black and the feet olive-green. This bird occurs in 

 Europe, Asia, and North America, and generally in 

 the vicinity of the coasts. 



THE AVOCET {Recurvirostra Avocetta)—Vl!xt<i 27, 

 fig. 102 — is remarkable for the length of its legs and 

 for the singular form of its bill, which is long, slender, 

 and strongly curved upwards. It measures about 

 eighteen inches in length, and its plumage is curiously 

 pied with black and white. The toes are united by 

 large membranes, but it does not appear to use its feet 

 in swimming, as is done by some species not so well 

 provided. The Avocet inhabits Asia and Africa, and 

 visits Europe as a bird of passage ; it is rare in this 

 country, but appears to have been more abundant 

 formerly. It is sometimes seen on the coast, but more 

 Vol. I. 



frequently in marshy places on the borders of water in 

 the interior , it walks about on the soft .sand or mud, 

 or wades deeply into the water, poking about with its 

 long, flexible, and curiously formed bill in search of 

 the worms, aquatic insects, and small crustaceans on 

 which it feeds. The nest is made in a small hole in 

 the ground, and the bird is said to lay only two eggs. 



THE STILT {Himantojms mdanoptcrus), also called 

 the Long-legged Plover, is especially remarkable 

 for the immense length of its slender legs, which appear 

 quite out of proportion to its little body. It is nearly 

 allied to the Avocet, but has a straight bill; and the 

 posterior toe, which is small in the Avocet, is in the 

 present bird entirely wanting. The back and wings 

 are nearly black, with a slight green tinge ; the 

 remainder of the plumage is white, the bill is black, 

 and the feet are pink. The length of the bird is about 

 thirteen inches. This species is found in Europe, 

 Africa, and Asia ; it is a rare visitor to this country. 



THE AMERICAN STILT {Himantopus m'gricoUis), a 

 bird very nearl}' allied to the last species, but distin- 

 guished from it by its black head and neck, is found on 

 the Atlantic coasts of North America in company wilh 

 the American Avocet. During the breeding season it 

 associates in small parties of six or eight pairs, which 

 make their nests, at a short distance apart, amongst 

 the thick tufts of grass on the dry ground near the salt 

 marshes frequented by them. The nests are composed 

 of dry grass, twigs, and similar materials, and as the 

 birds sit they continually add to the height of their 

 nests, probably with a view to protect the eggs or 

 young from any accidental rising of the water above 

 its ordinary level. Several other species of Stilts are 

 known ; they are scattered over all parts of the world. 



THE RITFF {PMlomacIms pugnax). The male of 

 this species is adorned during the breeding season with 

 a large quantity of feathers, springing from the head 

 and throat and forming a large ruff, which is capable 

 of being raised or depressed at the pleasure of the bird, 

 hence its ordinary English name. The females, which 

 are called Reeves, are destitute of this ornament. This 

 bird is rather more than ten inches in length ; the 

 feathers of the upper surface are black, broadly mar- 

 gined with ash-colour and brown ; those of the neck 

 and breast are still more broadly edged with grayish- 

 white, and the remainder of the lower surface is white. 



The Ruff inhabits most parts of Europe in the sum- 

 mer, but is most common towards the north ; it is also 

 found in Asia and Northern Africa, and performs a 

 regular migration in spring and autumn. In this 

 country it is met with in the fen districts, where it 

 breeds, but is much less common here than formerly. 

 It is polygamous in its habits, and the males fight with 

 the greatest ferocity and determination. 



THE KNOT {Tringa Canutus), unlike the preceding 

 species, is a winter visitor to this country, where it is 

 not an uncommon bird from autumn to spring. It 

 does not appear ever to breed in any part of the British 

 islands, but resorts to very high northern latitudes for this 

 purpose. Like a good many other biids which have 

 this habit, it is common to both hemispheres, of which 

 it seems to inhabit all the northern parts. The Knot 

 is about ten inches in length, and in the summer its 



3 G 



