THE WADING BIEDS OF NOEIH CHINA. 147 



There are ten plovers common to North China, namely, the grey- 

 headed plover (Alwrosarcops ciiicreus), the Cffsted plover or lapwing 

 {Vanellus vanellus), the golden plover (Cliaradrius julvus), the little 

 ringed plover {Aegialitis Dtinor) the larger ringed plover [Acg. placidus) 

 the sand plover (Acg. cantianiis), the larger sand plover (Acg. gcofjrovi), 

 the ]\Iongolian plover (Acg. viongolicus), the dotterel [Cliaradrius 

 vcrcdus) and the pratincole {Glareola orientalis). Tliese are all well 

 known to the sportsman, for he vvill continually meet them. The 

 grey-headed plover is the largest. It is of a grey colour above, white 

 below, with black and white wings and tail, and a conspicuous black 

 band across the breast. The beak is yellow at the base, black at the 

 tip, and there are yellow fleshy appendages on either side of the face. 

 In flight it resembles the lapwing, to which bird it also bears consider- 

 able resemblnnce in its habits. 



The lapwing is a particularly well known bird. Its black plumage 

 has a fine metallic sheen changing from a rich green to coppery red in 

 tlie sunlight. Tlie lower lireast and belly are white, the under tail- 

 coverts of a rich chestnut-fawn colour. Its name is derived from its 

 habits of pretending to be wounded, and flapping along with an 

 apparently broken wing in order to draw the intruder away from its nest. 



Tlie golden plover is a graceful bird, about the size of a snipe, 

 with fine golden-green plumage thickly speckled with black. I have 

 yet to see the sportsman who will let a golden plover pass if he could 

 bag it, for its flesh is excellent, ranking, some people think, even 

 higher than that of the snipe itself. 



The members of the genus Aegialitis may be distinguished from 

 one another thus : — 



Lesser sand plover : Chestnut on back of head ; incomplete neck 

 ring. 



Greater sand plover : Chestnut head, neck, and breast. No neck 

 ring. 



Lesser ringed plover- complete neck ring, grey-black and white 

 back and wings; no chestnut colour; with a white ring round 

 the neck. 



Greater ringed plover: the same as the lesser ringed plover, hut 

 larger in size. 



IMongoIian plover: like the greater sand plover, but with black 

 gorget or neck ring, and of a smaller size. 



The dotterel {Cliaradrius veredus) is also classed with the plovers 

 and is certainly very like them. It may be recognised by its whitish buff 

 head, chestnut breast and upper flanks, bordered below by black, 

 grey-brown back and long legs. It is, however, very rarely seen. It 



