23G AVER. 



The Kestricted Plovers (Charadnns,) — 

 Have tlie beak swoln only above, and two-tliirds of its length oceupied by the nasal groove on each 

 side, which renders it weaker. They live in numerous flocks, frequent Itnv and humid places, and 

 stamp the ground to cause the worms on which they feed to rise. 



Those of France are merely birds of passn^e, wViicli are met with in autumn and sprin',^ ; ni:-;tr the sea-coast some 

 of them remain till the beginnins; of winter. [They alt breed, however, witliin tlie British i^^les, and at least some 

 of them in France also.] Their flesh is excellent. They form, with numerous exotic species, a tribe witli reticu- 

 lated tarsi, of \^ Inch the most remarkable ai-e 



The Golden Plover iC/>. plurinlis, Lin.).— Blackish, speckled with yehow at the tips of the feathers ; the belly 

 black [in summer, in winter wlute. It breeds on upland moors. There are others very closely allied, but smaller, 

 in India, Australia, and North America]. 



The Dottrel Plover (C7i. morincllus^ Lin.). — Grey oi" blackish, the feathers eili^'edwith wldtislr fuh'ous ; a^vhite 

 srreak over the eye, the breast and up|»er part of the belly bri;4"ht rufuus, and the lower part of the beih wliite. 

 [It breeds on the very summits of mountains uncovered by snow; flies in Jar^e scattered tlocks, ■which are nut 

 shy ; and is partial to chalky districts : its feathers are much esteemed by anglers,] 



The Ring' Plover {Ch. hlaticula, Lin.).- Greyish brown above, white beneath, with a black [or in winter a brown] 

 collar on the lower part of the neck, very broad anteriorly ; the head marked with black and white, and the beak 

 yellow tipped with black. T\\o or three races or dilferent species inhabit these parts, varying- in size and the 

 distribution of the colours of the head. [Those of Britain are, first, the conmmn Ring Plover, with plumage as 

 abo\'e described, and orange-coloured legs, winch is everywhere very abundant on the sea-coast, breeding both 

 there and on heaths a little inland ; the Kentish Plover {Ch. cantianun), with longer and black legs, and a rufous 

 occiput, an inhabitant of shingle-beaches, and less deeply coloured; and the Little Plo\-er (C. y;z/norl, which is a 

 diuhnutive of the first, and of excessively rare occurrence so far noitli.] There are numerous other foreign i{)<i- 

 cies, witli similar general distribution of colours. 



Various exotic Plovers have scutellated tarsi, and form a small division (the Pha-ianiis, Vieillnt), of which the 

 greater number of species possess spurs to the wings, and fleshy wattles to the head; some of them have botli 

 these characters. 



The Lapwings {VaiicUaSy Bechst. ; Tnmjn, Lin.) — 

 Have the same beak as the Plovers, and are only distinguished by the presence of a back-toe, which 

 however is so small that it docs not reach the ground. 



In the (irst tribe of them (the ><qiialaro(a, Cnv.), this back-toe is scarcely perceptible. The bdl is 

 swoln underneath, and the nasal groove as short as in the Thick-knee. The feet are reticulated, and 

 tlie tail of the European species is rayed black and white. It associates with the Plovers. 



The Grey Lapwing, or Stone Plover {Tringa squafrirola, Auct,)— [This bird diflers only from the Golden Plo\'er 

 in the stoutness of its bill, and in possessing the small iiack toe. Its seasonal changes are the same, having the 

 nnder-parts black in summer and white in winter; the feathers above are similarly mottled, only with whitish 

 instead of yellow, except in the young, which is even speckled with yellow. From the true Lapwings and the 

 I'luviani, this bird and the restricted Plovers difl'er in their pointed wings and reticulated tarsi ; the latter having 

 scutellated tarsi, broad and rounded wings, and a diflerent system of coloi-ntion. Its habits are precis^ely those of 

 the Golden Plover, and it breeds on some of the northern British moors.] 



THr: Ri;strict!:d Lapwings {VaitcUns, Cuv.) — 

 Have the hind-toe rather more developed, the tarsi scutellated, at least in part, and the nasal fossa pro- 

 longed over two-thirds of the beak. They procure worms in the same manner as the Plovers, [and are 

 peculiar tn the eastern hemisphere]. 



That cornnionin Europe, the Crested Lapwing {T. vaiicUiiSy Lin.), is a handsome species the size of a Pigeon, of 

 a richly bronzed black above, with a long and slender occipital crest. [Thioat Ijlack in summer and white in 

 winter, at which latter season the colours are comparatively dull.] It arrives in spring, lives and propagates in 

 the meadows, and departs in autumn. The eggs are considered a great delicacy. 



There are some species of this genus in hot climates, the wings of \^hich are armed with one or two sjuirs, and 

 others which have fleshy wattles at the base of the beak. They are very noisy birds, screaming at every sound 

 they hear, and defend themselves with courage against birds of prey. Live also in the meadows. [A second 

 Luropean species of Lapwing, from the south-eastern countries, is the V. ijrcf/aiin.t, Pallas, or f. hcptiuclut, Teni.] 



The Oystkk-catci-iers {Ihematojm^!, Lin.) — 

 Have the Ijeak rather longer than in the Plovers and Lapwings, straight, pointed, and compressed into 

 a wedge ; strong enough to enable them to force open the bivalve shells of the raoUusks on wdnch 

 they feed. They also seek for worms upon the ground. The nasal groove, which is verv deep, 

 occupies half the length of the bill, and the nostrils are pierced in the nhddlc like a small hssure. 

 Their legs are of mean length, the tarsi reticulated, and the feet divided only into three toes. 



