THE STILT-WALKERS. 39 



tail one inch and a half. During spring the feathers on the crown of the head are black, edged with 

 rust-red, those on the nape grey marked with a darker shade, and those on the sides of the neck and 

 upper breast light rust-red spotted with brown ; a whitish stripe passes over the eyes, and between the 

 latter and the beak a dark brown line. The eye is brown, the beak black, and the foot greenish 

 black. In autumn all the feathers on the upper portions of the body are deep grey, with brown lines 

 on the shafts; the gullet, sides of the head, and lower breast are reddish grey, the rest of the under side 



is white. 



This species principally inhabits the northern portions of the globe, but during the course of its 

 extensive wanderings is met with at certain seasons on almost every coast. In England it usually 

 occupies the shores of the eastern and southern counties. During its migrations, which are carried 

 on by night and in large flocks, it visits Egypt in vast numbers, and is frequently to be seen 

 associated with a great variety of other species. Moist muddy coasts and shores are the situations it 

 prefers, though it by no means avoids sandy localities. In disposition the Dwarf Sandpipers are 

 lively and active, graceful and easy in all their movements. With their own kind they live in the 

 utmost harmony, and exhibit but little fear towards man ; in other respects they resemble the members 

 of the family already described. It is probable that the Dwarf Sandpipers breed in the extreme 

 north of Europe, but as yet their nests have only been found in Greenland and the most northern 

 parts of the American continent. The four smooth glossy eggs are placed in a slight depression in the 

 earth, and have a dull, greyish yellow shell, clouded with grey, and spotted and dotted with brown of 



various shades at the broad end. 



THE RUFF. 



The Ruff (Philomachus pugnax) has a straight beak of about the same length as the head, or a 

 little longer, and slightly depressed at its tip ; the high slender feet are bare, and furnished with four 

 toes : of these the three placed in front are connected by a skin ; the hind toe is short and much 

 raised. The moderate-sized pointed wing has the first quill longer than the rest, and the short tail is 

 slightly rounded ; the plumage is soft and thick. The male bird is about a third larger than his mate, 

 and has during the spring his face covered with warts, and his neck adorned with a strange and beautiful 

 • collar ; both these peculiarities, however, disappear towards autumn. So varied and changeful is the 

 coloration of the plumage, that a detailed description is almost impossible. The collar above alluded 

 to is composed of harsh feathers, about three inches long, and so wonderfully different in their hues 

 that scarcely two males are exactly like each other ; black and brown, and white feathers of various 

 shades, spotted, striped, and marked in every conceivable way, appear indifferently on this part of the 

 plumage. The upper wing is deep brownish grey, and the blackish grey tail is spotted with black ; 

 the belly is white, and the rest of the body very variously coloured and marked. It has, we believe, 

 been ascertained that each male exhibits the same hues and markings every succeeding year. The eye is 

 brown, the beak generally greenish or greenish yellow, and the foot reddish yellow. This species is from 

 eleven inches to twelve inches and a half long, and from twenty-three inches and a half to twenty-four 

 inches across ; the wing measures from seven inches to seven inches and a half, and the tail about three 

 inches. The plumage of the female, which does not vary as does that of her mate, is principally 

 reddish grey, darkly spotted upon the upper portions of the body. The face and brow are light grey, 

 the crown is grey, striped with brownish black ; the nape-feathers are grey, those on the back and 

 shoulders blackish brown, edged with rust-red. The throat and gullet are grey, and the belly-feathers 

 of a whitish hue. The female is ten inches long, and twenty-one inches and a half broad. 



The Ruffs were originally natives of the northern portion of the Eastern Hemisphere, but are now 

 occasionally met with in North America. During their migrations they not only visit every country of 

 Europe and Asia, but the entire African continent, usually taking up their abode on extensive bogs or 



