626 GOLDEN PLOVER. 



more pointed than those of the Lapwing, being at an average two inches 

 and one-twelfth in length, and an inch and a-half in their greatest trans- 

 verse diameter. The shell is thin and smooth, of a light greyish-yellow 

 or cream-colour, irregularly spotted, dotted and patched with dark brown, 

 and sometimes having a few light purple spots interspersed, the markings 

 larger towards the broadest part. The young leave the nest immediately 

 after they burst the shell, and conceal themselves by lying flat on the 

 ground. At this period, the female evinces the greatest anxiety for their 

 safety, and will occasionally feign lameness to entice the intruder to pur- 

 sue her. I have several times seen one fly off to a considerable distance, 

 alight in a conspicuous place, and tumble about as if in the agonies of 

 death, her wings flapping as if they had been fractured or dislocated. 

 The eggs are delicious, and the young birds when fledged not less so. 



" When the young are able to fly, the Plovers collect into flocks, but 

 remain on the moors until the commencement of winter, when they ad- 

 vance towards the pasture lands, and in severe weather betake themselves 

 to the low grounds near the shores. During continued frosts, they feed 

 on the sands and rocky shores at low water, and in general during the 

 winter remain at no great distance from the sea. 



" When a flock alights at this season on a field, the individuals dis- 

 perse, run about with great activity, and pick up their food. Sometimes 

 one finds them so tame that he can approach within fifteen yards, and I 

 have often walked round a flock several times in order to force them to- 

 gether before shooting. In windy weather they often rest by lying flat 

 on the ground, and I have reason to think that at night this is their ge- 

 neral practice. In the Hebrides I have often gone to shoot them at night 

 by moonlight, when they seemed as actively engaged as by day, which 

 was also the case with the Snipes ; but I seldom succeeded in ray object, 

 it being extremely difficult to estimate distances at night. The numbers 

 that at this season frequent the sandy pastures and shores of the Outer 

 Hebrides is astonishing. 



" The Golden Plover, although occasionally addicted to wading, evi- 

 dently prefers dry ground, in which respect it differs essentially in habits 

 from the Totani and Limosce. It frequently probes the moist sands, and 

 in summer the dry cow dung on the moors and upland pastures is seen 

 perforated by its bill. It affords delicious eating, and in my opinion is 

 scarcely inferior in this respect to the Woodcock." 



