Sea and shore birds of Australia.



263



Mr. Abrahams showing me the skin of a yellow which he said was

produced by inbreeding, and I think there is no doubt that yellow

was bred this way, but I cannot see that blues are the result of con¬

stitutional vigour. I think people who have had blues will agree

with this, and it is much more likely that they are a throw-back to

the original colour, and can only be produced by inbreeding.



SEA AND SHORE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA.*


By THE LATE A. J. NORTH, C.M.Z.S.


Belonging to the Order Limicola, many species will be found

frequenting the sandy beaches and shallow inlets of the coast, also

estuarine areas and contiguous lakes. Among them may be men¬

tioned the White-breasted Oyster-catcher ( Hcematopus longirostris),

the Golden Plover ( Charadrius dominions ), the rarer Hooded Dotterel

(.AEgialites cucullata), and the Red-capped Dotterell (JE. ruficapilla).

Near Sydney, about the mud-flats at the mouths of Cook and George

Rivers, and at other parts of Botany Bay, at one season or another,

may be seen the Australian Curlew ( Numenius cyanopus ), the

Eastern Bar-tailed God wit ( Limosa novce-zealanclice), the Marsh

Tringa ( Heteropygia acuminata), and the Grey-rumped Sandpiper

( Totanus brevipes). Further inland are more abundantly distributed,

the Spur-winged Plover ( Lobivanellus lobatus ), the Stone Plover

( CEdicnemus grallarius), the Black-breasted Plover ( Sarciophorus

pectoralis), the White-headed Stilt ( Himantopus leucocephalus), and

the Red-necked Avocet ( Becurvirostra novce-hollandice). In central

and western New South Wales are found the Red-kneed Dotterel

( Erythrogonys cinctus), the Australian Dotterel (. Peltohyas australis),

the Pratincole (StiltiaIsabella), and the Rhynchsea or “ Painted Snipe ”

( Rhynchcea australis). Latham’s Snipe ( Gallinago australis), locally

known to most sportsmen by the name of “ Jack-Snipe,” a migrant

from Japan, is a visitor at the latter end of August or early in

September, chiefly to the eastern and central districts of the State.


The Order Gavice is chiefly represented by the Marsh Tern

(Hydrochelulon hybrida), the Long-legged Tern ( Gelochelidon macro-



* Reprinted from the ‘New South Wales Handbook,' British Association Visit.



