Birds of Celebes: Charadriidae. 745 



tirst; then the quills on amval in its winter quarters, in August— November, or about the 

 same time if it spends the summer there ; and finally the feathers of the upper parts. 



Eggs. Cream-yellow, blotched chiefly at the larger end with pitch-black: size 35.5 x 25.4 mm 

 (Harting 15 — Madagascar]. Some eggs described from Formosa by Swinhoe (d 1) 

 as those of Charadrius longipes are almost certainly those of this species, as was first 

 supposed by Seebohm (Ibis 1879, 154) and Legge (13) and afterwards confinned 

 by comparison with Harting's specimens. Four in number (Swinhoe d 1). 



Nest. A loose nest of dried grasses and fibres placed in a hollow (Swinhoe dl ~ horn the 

 south-west marshy plains of Formosa). 



Distribution. Asia, except (as yet) Siberia; Africa, East Coast from Egypt to Central Africa 

 (Emin a 15] and the Cape, also Benguela; Madagascar, the Seychelles, Mauritius; 

 East India Islands; Austraha; N. W. Polynesia; Europe — a rare straggler (of. 

 Dresser XI; Legge 13; Hartlaub a 4; Milne-Ed. & Grandid. a 6\ Salvador! 

 17, 44; Sharpe f 1; Ramsay 34; Wiglesworth 45); India (Blyth 17, Hume 3, c 3, 

 etc.); Ceylon (Legge 13); Laccadive Is. (Hume 7); Andamans, Mcobars (Hume & 

 Davison c 2); Christmas Island. (Lister a 11); Burmah (Gates 19); Tenasserim 

 (Armstrong 10); Malay Peninsula (Hume 12, Kelham 14); China (Swinh. d 1, 17, 

 David 8); Japan (Whitely 11, a 13); Formosa (Swinhoe 17, d 1); Hainan (Styan 

 a 20); Philippines (Cuming 17, Everett 13'''% etc.); Borneo (Diard, etc., a 3, 38); 

 Sumatra (S. Miiller a 3, Horner a 3); Nias (Modigliani 28); Java (Kuhl & 

 V. Hasselt a 3); Sumba (ten Kate a 17); Flores (Wallace 17); Timor ("Wallace 

 17, ten Kate a 16); Celebes — Gorontalo Distr. (Meyer el, Riedel 27), Minahassa 

 (Guillemard 23, etc.). Macassar and Goa ("Weber a 1!)); Sangi Islands — Gt. Sangi 

 (Bruijn 6), Siao (Nat. ColL in Dresd. Mus.); Talaut Is. — Kabruang (iid. ib.); 

 Peling (iid. 55); Moluccas — Morty, Halmahera, Ternate, Batchian, Buru, Ceram, 

 Amboina (Salvadori 17, 44); Papuasia — Timoi-laut, "Waigiou, PMyisol, Salawatti, 

 New Guinea, Aru (Salvadori 17, 44); Northern Australia (Ramsay 34); Pelew Is. 

 (Semper 45); Carolines — Kushai (Lesson 45). 



The i^resent species as regards its geographical range may be compared 

 with the Eastern Golden Plover, Charadrius fulvus, except that it occurs neither 

 so far north nor south, not being recorded as yet from Siberia or Mongolia by 

 Taczanowski and Prjevalsky, nor from S. Australia, Tasmania or N. Zealand. 

 J^ike Charadrius fulvus, it has straggled to Europe, a specimen being recorded 

 by Giglioli from Italy, though Temminck's supposed Russian example re- 

 mains doubtful (25). Like C. fulvus also, the main body of individuals are 

 migratory, but many remain in the tropics throughout the year, and the breed- 

 ing of this species in Madagascar (15) may be compared with the breeding of 

 C. fulvus in New Caledonia and New Zealand. In Celebes the bird appears 

 to be present all the year, for Meyer obtained it at Limbotto in July; but 

 this example is in winter plumage. In Malacca it is found in great numbers, 

 according to Kelham, during the N. E. monsoon (winter). In Palawan "Whitehead 

 observed it arriving in flocks about the middle of August and speaks of it as 

 the commonest winter visitor to Labuan, where it remains "late enough to attain 

 its full summer plumage". According to Mr. De La Touche, it passes through 

 South China on migration; where these individuals breed remains to be dis- 

 covered. As has been made evident by Seebohm and Harting, it was the 



Meyer & Wiglesworth, Birds of Celebes (Dec, :!rii, 1W)7). 94 



