GRALLiE. 245 



fhe first, and mottled with rufous above, and a "black patch across the breast, in the breeding season : it is the 

 comiiioiicst of all, and sonic bieed on the ujiland moors. The Curlew Sandpiper (.Vc. subarqituta. Cm. ; yiimeniiis 

 afriraniifi. Lath.), resembles the Knot in colourin<^ and seasonal chany-es, and the Purre in size, with a still lunger 

 and more-arcuated bill ; it is not common, nor very rare, on the British shores. The Little Sandpiper (7V. minuta) 

 is considerably less than the last, with a short bill ; it acquires some rufous tints in the sprinti;, on the upper parts 

 and across the breast, and is certainly rare, thongh very much overlooked. Three or four others occur as strag- 

 glers. These active-little birds take their food along the margin of the sea, following each retreating wave ; when 

 gregarious in considerable flocks, and in their winter plumage, the whole show alternately their grey upper 

 pints and white lower parts as they whirl in the air, producing a remarkable appearance, well known to those 

 accustomed to wander by the sea side.] 



The Sanderlings {Areuaria, Beclist. ; Calidrls, Vigors) — 

 Merely differ in the absence of idnd-toc, like the I'lovers. 



One only is known {C/iarodrius ccdidrU, Gmelin), the size of a Purre, with analogous seasonal changes to those 

 of the Knot Sandpiper. [It appears to be almost generally diffused, and is common on ihe British shores.] 



The Falcinelles {Erolia, Yieillot) — 

 Have the beak ratiier more arcuated than in the Curlew Sandpiper, but do not, as has been asserted, 

 T\'ant the thniub. 



AVe are acqiuiinted with one only, {Sc. pj/i]uuca, Lin.), a bird proper to Africa, but which is occasionally found 

 in Europe. 



The Ruffs {Machetof;, Cuv.)— 



Are true Sandpipers by the bill and feet, except that the palniature of their outer toes is nearly as 

 considerable as in the Garabets, Godwits, &c. 



One species only is known {Tr. pugnax,hm.). Larger tlijin a Snipe, and very celebrated for the furious combats 

 which the males wage in spring for the possession of the females. At this epoch, the head becomes partly covered 

 ^vith red [or yellow] papilla;, and the neck is furnished with a very considerable collar or ruff of lengthened feathers, 

 su vai-iously marked and coloured in ditlerent individuals, that two can hardly ever be found alike, and rarely much 

 resembling each other. They have always yellow legs*, which, together with the semi-i^ulmatiou of the toes, assists 

 us to recognize them at all seasons. The species is common in the north of Europe, [and is remarkable for the 

 male exceeding the female in size, at variance with the other members of this group, but in accordance with 

 its polyg'amous habits. Vast numbers are brought from Holland to the London markets.] 



America produces some species nearly allied, as the Ilemipalamus, Bonap. ; or Tringa semqmhnaia, Wilson; 

 [the habits of which are more allied to those of the Gambets, to which in fact they essentially belong]. 



Near the Sandpipers shouhl apparently be placed 



The Spathe-eill {Eurinor/ii/nchus, Wilson), — 

 Which is distinguished by a depressed bill, "widened at the tip somewhat as in the Spoonbills, and tlie 

 only species of which is 



The Plnlaleo pygnuea, Lin.; Eurlnoninchus gr'uscus, "Wilson {Thnn. Acad. Siicr., 1816, pi. vi), which is one of 

 the rarest birds in existence, as it is only known by a single individual, grey above and white beneath, and about 

 the size of a Purre Sandpiper. [It has since been met with in northern Asia.] 



The Phalaropes {Phalaropus, Brisson), — ■ 

 Are small birds, the bill of which, more tiatteued than in the Sandpipers, is otherwise similar as regards 

 its proportions and lateral grooves, and the tucs of which are bordered with very broad membranes, 

 as ill the Coots. [Their lower plumage resembles in texture that of the Gulls,] 



The known species (Tr. lohaia and Tr. fuJlcaria, Lin.), has a wide bill for a member of this f;imily, and is in 

 winter ash-coloured above, whitish below and on the head, with a black band upon the neck : it is then the Grey 

 Phalarope {Tr. lohaia, Edw.). In summer it becomes black, mottled with fulvous above, and of a deep reddish 

 below [like the Knot Sandpiper, Godwits, &c.] ; but at all seasons it retains a white spot on the wing, the rest of 

 which is blackish. It is then the Red Phalarope (Ph. riifus, Bechstein and Meyer ; Tr. fulicaria, Lin.). This bird 

 i^ rare in Europe [not very so in the British Isles, during the season of passage, when individuals are occasionally 

 nirt with swimming upon inland ponds, like a very diminutive Duck, and evincing little fear or shyness : they 

 also occur in small flocks, and breed chiefly within the Arctic circle]. 



The Turnstones (Strepsilas, Illiger), — 

 Are rather lower on the legs, and Iiave a short bill, and toes devoid of any palmature, like the true 

 Sandpipers; but their beak is conical, pointed, and without depression, compression, or inflation, and 

 tlie nasal groove reaches oidy half-way. The thumb barely touches the grouud. Their beak, rather 



• This is vary far froui bs'iuj^ the case. — Ed 



