120 



with blackish brown ; primary quills blackish brown on the outer web and terminal portion, otherwise 

 white barred with blackish; tail long and graduated, central rectrices dark buffy brown barred with 

 black, the remaining feathers pale rufescent, irregularly barred with black, and broadly tipped with 

 white, with a large subterminal black bar ; upper tail-coverts like the rump ; chin and sides of the head 

 before the eye white ; neck and breast buffy white, the former striped, and the feathers on the latter 

 margined with black ; rest of the underparts white, the flanks, under wing-coverts, and axillaries barred 

 with black ; bill yellowish at the base, otherwise blackish ; iris dark brown ; legs clay-yellow. Total 

 length about 11-5 inches, culmen 1"4, wing 6 - 65, tail 3'6, tarsus l - 95. 



Adult Male. Does not differ from the female in plumage, but is, on an average, rather less in size. 



Adult in winter (Mexico). Differs from the specimen above described only in having the upper parts rather 

 paler, the feathers on the back more broadly margined with rufous buff, and the markings on the lower 

 throat and breast mere small stripes or arrow-shaped marks, and not broad margins to the feathers. 



Young in down (Iowa). Upper parts richly mottled black, white, and warm buff; crown brightly mottled, 

 surrounded with a black line, and on the nape marked with another black line interrupted by a broad 

 buffy white line; sides of the head, forehead, and underparts white. 



The present species, which inhabits the Nearctic Region, straggling down into the Neotropical 

 Region during winter, has, curiously enough, not only been met with on several occasions in 

 Europe, but has even been once recorded from Australia. 



The first record of its occurrence in England is that by the late Hugh Reid, of Doncaster, 

 who in 'The Zoologist' for 1852 (p. 3330) described a Sandpiper, unknown to him, which had 

 been shot near Warwick in October 1851. Mr. A. G. More and Mr. Gurney immediately sug- 

 gested (p. 3388) that the bird so described was a Bartram's Sandpiper; and this it proved to be 

 (p. 4254). The specimen passed from the collection of R. T. Barnard, Esq., of Kinton Hall 

 near Warwick, into that of Lord Willoughby de Broke, at Compton Verney, near Stratford-on- 

 Avon. The occurrence of a second specimen was made known by the Rev. F. Tearle, of Trinity 

 Hall, Cambridge, in the 'Illustrated London News' of 20th February 1855, and was subse- 

 quently sent to Yarrell, who says (Brit. B. ii. p. 433) that one " was shot on the 12th of December 

 1854, about three o'clock in the afternoon, in a ploughed field between Cambridge and New- 

 market. Some farm-labourers, who were engaged in thrashing near the spot, observed a strange 

 bird flying round in large circles over the adjoining field, and uttering a whistling cry at short 

 intervals. It frequently alighted, and ran along the ground like a Corncrake. One of the 

 men thought he could catch it with his hat, and gave chase ; but the bird, as soon as he came 

 near, rose and flew around, whistling as before. On seeing that it did not fly away the son of 

 the gamekeeper, who lived close by, went into his father's house for a gun, and came out and 

 shot it. He sent it to me a few days afterwards, calling it a Whistling Plover." This specimen 

 is now in the collection of Mr. Gurney, at Northrepps. A third instance of its occurrence in 

 England is recorded in the 'Times' of the 14th November 1865, by Dr. W. K. Bullmore, who 

 states that one was obtained near Falmouth; and Mr. Harting (Handb. Brit. B. p. 137) includes 

 the specimen recorded by Mr. Morris as having been obtained at Bigswear, Gloucestershire, on 

 the 19th January, 1855. Naumann (Vog. Deutschl. viii. p. 51) records the occurrence of a 

 single specimen obtained on the Werra, in Hessen, but he does not give the date when it was 



