SPOTTED REDSHANK. 207 



The plumage of the young bird is the one in which we 

 meet with the greater number of specimens, and consequently 

 are most acquainted with. From the base of the beak extends 

 a white streak over and around the eye ; the chin is also 

 white. The reins are dusky ; the top of the head dusky, 

 generally without spots, sometimes, however, with a few 

 whitish edges to the feathers ; the cheeks are mottled with 

 dusky and white in streaks ; the hinder part of the neck cine- 

 reous dusky, with pale rusty streaks and spots ; the front of 

 the neck has the same colouring, but much paler. All the under 

 parts, as breast, belly, and vent, spotted and lined with very 

 pale grey, dusky and rufous, on a dirty white ground. No 

 other species of wader having any markings on the breast and 

 belly, but being, on the contrary, pure white, the present spe- 

 cies is thereby easily distinguished. 



The upper part of the back, and the pointed tertials, are 

 dusky, darkest on the borders of the feathers, and reflected 

 with pale green and purple like changeable silk ; the wing- 

 coverts and secondaries the same, but much paler ; the larger 

 wing-coverts dusky, with white edges at their tips. The shaft 

 of the first quill-feather is white, the others hair-brown, (which 

 is also the case in summer plumage.) The inner webs of 

 the first five quill-feathers are mottled towards their roots with 

 pearl-colour and dusky, which colouring terminates in trian- 

 gular spots towards their centre and tips ; and these markings 

 increase and extend over the outer webs of the secondaries, 

 and thus give the feathering a generally mottled appear- 

 ance. 



The lower part of the back is pure white ; the rump is 

 spotted with dusky on a white ground ; and the upper tail- 

 coverts are barred with these colours ; the under tail-coverts 

 the same, but paler. The tail-feathers are dusky, with black 

 shafts, and are darkest towards their edges. The legs are pale 

 orange- red. 



