Wanderings of a Naturalist 



Flying this way, now that, the flock frequently makes as 

 though to alight on some field, but they are nervous, and just 

 as they appear about to settle, fly forward once more, ulti- 

 mately alighting in a field of turnips a few hundred yards 

 from the seashore, and at once commencing to feed. But 

 they are not for long left in peace. Black-headed and com- 

 mon gulls appear mysteriously on the scene, and, in the most 

 innocent manner possible take up their stations near to the 

 feeding plover, remaining motionless and apparently lost in 

 thought. But should a golden plover within their keen range 

 of vision be fortunate enough to secure some juicy worm, 

 then the gull nearest to it is instantly galvanized into activity, 

 and chivvies the unfortunate plover about until it is obliged 

 to drop its find, which is at once devoured by the pursuer. 

 As far as my observations go, this parasitic habit of preying 

 on golden plover and lapwing is confined to our two smallest 

 gulls, namely, the black-headed and common species (the 

 former is the more notorious in this respect), for the larger 

 gulls, such as the herring and black-backed varieties, never 

 seem to obtain their food in this manner. 



To the Northumbrian coast the golden plover is a winter 

 visitor only, although those birds nesting in the high north 

 still frequent the coast-line in flocks at a time when the British 

 nesting birds of the species have long since arrived on the 

 moors. 



On the Cheviots and moors near them the golden plover 

 nests in large numbers, but I do not think these birds winter 

 on the Northumbrian coast. It is more probable that, at the 

 close of the nesting season, the Cheviot nesting birds travel 

 south, wintering in Ireland, or even south of the British 

 Isles. As an instance of this south-westerly migration, a 

 young golden plover, ringed as a nestling in Inverness-shire, 

 was shot the same autumn in County Mayo. Thus the 

 evidence points to the birds one sees in winter being migrants 

 from the north, perhaps Iceland and Norway. 



It may, in this connexion, be of interest to mention that 



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