CHAEADEITJS. 



131 



Charadrius zonatus, Swainson, B. of W. Afr. ii. p. 235 (1837). 



iEgialitis curonicus (Gmel.), Keyserling u. Blasius, Wirb. Eur. p. lxxi (1840). 



Hiaticula philippina (Latt.)O Blyth> Cat B Mus , As . Soc , 263j 264 (1849) . 



Hiaticula pusilla (Horsf.), J 



Hiaticula curonica (Gmel.), Lichtenstein, Nomencl. Av. p. 94 (1854). 



iEgialites zonatus (Swains.), Hartlaub, Orn. W.-Afr. p. 216 (1857). 



iEgialites pusillus (Horsf.), Swinhoe, Ibis, 1860, p. 63. 



iEgialites philippinus (Lath.), Swinhoe, Ibis, 1861, p. 342. 



iEgialitis minutus (Pall.), Jerdon, B. India, ii. p. 641 (1864). 



Pluvialis fluviatilis (Bechst.), Droste, Vog. Borkum, p. 153 (1869). 



iEgialitis microrhynchus, Ridgway, Am. Nat. viii. p. 109 (1874). 



Plates. — Daub. PI. Enl. no. 921 ; Gould, Birds of Gt. Brit. iv. pi. 42 ; Dresser, Birds of Europe, 

 vii. pi. 524. 



Literature. 



Habits. — Seebohm, British Birds, iii. p. 16. 

 Eggs. — Seebohm, British Birds, pi. 26. fig. 8. 



The Little Ringed Plover has all the characters of Hodgson's Ringed Plover except Specific 



a .7777 characters, 



that the outer tail-feathers are less than a quarter of an inch shorter than the central ones. 



It is a smaller bird, with a wing about 4| instead of 5^ inches long from the carpal joint. 

 The additional character, scapulars the same colour as the back, is sufficient to distinguish 

 it from the only species belonging to the same group which is not excluded by the 

 shape of the tail. 



The Little Ringed Plover is a summer visitor to the whole of Europe north of the 

 basin of the Mediterranean and south of about lat. 60°, between which and the Arctic Circle 

 it can only be regarded as an accidental straggler. It is a resident in the basin of the 

 Mediterranean. South of the Great Desert it is only known as a winter visitor, extending 

 on the west coast of Africa as far south as the equator ; but on the east coast its winter 

 range appears to be much greater, extending to Mozambique and the Mauritius. On the 



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Geographi- 

 cal distribu- 

 tion. 



