﻿THE 
  'BIRDS 
  OF 
  NORTH 
  KENT. 
  171 
  

  

  one 
  egg 
  hatched 
  out 
  early 
  on 
  June 
  7th, 
  the 
  other 
  eggs 
  not 
  being 
  

   then 
  even 
  chipped, 
  nor 
  were 
  they 
  before 
  sun-down 
  on 
  that 
  day. 
  

   But 
  the 
  next 
  morning 
  there 
  was 
  only 
  one 
  egg 
  left 
  in 
  the 
  nest, 
  

   which 
  proved 
  to 
  be 
  an 
  infertile 
  one. 
  

  

  I 
  had 
  hoped 
  that 
  this 
  last 
  nest 
  would 
  have 
  given 
  me 
  the 
  

   opportunity 
  of 
  proving 
  the 
  truth 
  of 
  the 
  statement, 
  sometimes 
  

   made, 
  that 
  the 
  old 
  bird 
  removes 
  the 
  pieces 
  of 
  egg-shell 
  from 
  the 
  

   vicinity 
  of 
  the 
  nest 
  when 
  the 
  chicks 
  are 
  hatched. 
  On 
  June 
  7th, 
  

   when 
  I 
  found 
  the 
  one 
  chick 
  hatched, 
  as 
  already 
  mentioned, 
  one- 
  

   half 
  of 
  the 
  egg-shell 
  was 
  lying 
  in 
  the 
  nest-hollow, 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  

   half 
  close 
  to 
  it. 
  The 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  ground 
  enabled 
  me 
  to 
  

   conceal 
  myself 
  within 
  fifteen 
  yards 
  of 
  the 
  nest, 
  and 
  so 
  effectually, 
  

   that 
  the 
  bird 
  was 
  very 
  shortly 
  back 
  on 
  its 
  eggs. 
  It 
  took 
  no 
  

   notice 
  of 
  either 
  of 
  the 
  pieces 
  of 
  egg-shell. 
  After 
  it 
  had 
  been 
  

   settled 
  on 
  its 
  eggs 
  a 
  few 
  moments, 
  it 
  stood 
  up 
  in 
  the 
  nest 
  and 
  

   shuffled 
  the 
  eggs 
  and 
  young 
  bird 
  in 
  what 
  seemed 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  very 
  

   rough 
  manner 
  with 
  its 
  wings 
  and 
  feet. 
  It 
  then 
  settled 
  down 
  

   again, 
  and 
  remained 
  quite 
  still, 
  except 
  for 
  keen 
  alert 
  movements 
  

   of 
  its 
  head, 
  until 
  disturbed 
  by 
  some 
  children 
  coming 
  over 
  the 
  top 
  

   of 
  the 
  sea-wall. 
  But 
  in 
  the 
  meantime 
  the 
  wind 
  had 
  done 
  what 
  

   the 
  bird 
  is 
  supposed 
  to 
  do, 
  and 
  the 
  half 
  egg- 
  shell 
  outside 
  the 
  

   nest 
  was 
  blown 
  to 
  a 
  considerable 
  distance, 
  while 
  the 
  second 
  half 
  

   still 
  remained 
  in 
  the 
  nest-hollow. 
  Late 
  in 
  the 
  afternoon 
  this 
  

   other 
  half 
  had 
  also 
  disappeared; 
  and 
  the 
  following 
  morning, 
  

   when 
  all 
  but 
  one 
  egg 
  were 
  hatched, 
  there 
  were 
  no 
  egg-shells 
  to 
  

   be 
  seen 
  near. 
  Judging 
  from 
  my 
  own 
  experience 
  of 
  the 
  very 
  

   breezy 
  spots 
  which 
  these 
  birds 
  choose 
  as 
  nesting 
  sites, 
  it 
  would 
  

   be 
  scarcely 
  necessary 
  for 
  the 
  old 
  bird 
  to 
  do 
  more 
  than 
  kick 
  the 
  

   egg-shell 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  nest, 
  when 
  in 
  all 
  probability 
  the 
  wind 
  would 
  

   do 
  the 
  rest. 
  

  

  The 
  latest 
  date 
  at 
  which 
  I 
  have 
  handled 
  nestlings 
  was 
  

   Aug. 
  4th, 
  1901, 
  when 
  I 
  caught 
  and 
  examined 
  a 
  brood 
  of 
  four, 
  

   still 
  covered 
  with 
  down, 
  and 
  showing 
  no 
  sign 
  of 
  quill-feathers. 
  

   In 
  describing 
  the 
  markings 
  of 
  the 
  Binged 
  Plovers' 
  nestlings 
  in 
  

   ' 
  The 
  Zoologist,' 
  1903, 
  p. 
  222, 
  I 
  was 
  perhaps 
  not 
  quite 
  accurate 
  

   in 
  saying 
  that 
  there 
  was 
  no 
  sign 
  of 
  the 
  black 
  pectoral 
  band. 
  

   From 
  numerous 
  examinations 
  of 
  these 
  downy 
  nestlings 
  during 
  

   the 
  spring 
  of 
  1903, 
  I 
  would 
  correct 
  this 
  description 
  by 
  saying 
  

   that 
  there 
  is 
  the 
  commencement 
  of 
  this 
  band 
  in 
  the 
  shape 
  of 
  

  

  