CHARADRIIDE. 551 
THE GREY PLOVER. 
SQuaTAROLA HELVETICA (Linnzeus). 
This is a larger bird than the Golden Plover, with a more robust 
bill, and may be recognized on the wing by its black axillaries as 
well as its white tail-coverts; while, on handling a specimen, the 
presence of a distinct hind-toe is an unfailing characteristic. As 
compared with that species it is less numerous, and it is not found in 
large flocks, but small parties are widely distributed along our coasts 
and estuaries. A few black-breasted birds return from their northern 
quarters by the end of July or beginning of August ; the majority 
of the young arrive in September ; and the bulk of the adults come 
in October and November, after their moult. Considerable numbers 
spend the winter here, and flocks of a score or more frequent the sea- 
shore and mud-flats up to the end of May, by which time the black 
breast has been assumed ; while birds which are not breeding remain 
till June andeven July. Thougha regular winter-visitant to Ireland, 
it is less numerous there than in Great Britain, in which, again, it is 
