68 THE BIRDS OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



148. DUNLIN. 



T ring a variabilis. 



This bird, perhaps best known in this country as 

 Stint, or Ox-Bird, is by no means an uncommon, 

 although not a regular, autumnal visitor to our valley, 

 occasionally appearing in considerable numbers in 

 our meadows during a heavy flood, and a few may 

 be found almost annually in March and April on 

 their return to their breeding-quarters from the 

 south. 



The Dunlin generally nests on elevated moorlands. 

 In the summer of 1855 we found two pairs on Dart- 

 moor, which, from their actions, certainly had young 

 in the bog that we were attempting to cross. Nests 

 of the Dunlin have been found in Cornwall, Lincoln- 

 shire, and several of the northern counties of England. 

 In Scotland it is pretty generally distributed, and the 

 Editor of 4th ed. of Yarrell, from whom I quote re- 

 garding the breeding-range of our bird, adds that few, 

 comparatively speaking, are known to nest in Ireland. 



In autumn and early winter these birds assemble 

 on our coasts in immense numbers, preferring tidal 

 muds as a rule, but apparently also finding abundance 

 of food on shingle or sand. They fly in very close 

 order, and a judiciously timed shot is by no means 

 a waste of ammunition, as many may be killed with 

 the two barrels, and the Dunlin in winter is, in my 

 opinion, not a despicable bird for the table. 



It seems to be almost impossible to describe the 

 appearance of a dense flock of these little birds on 

 wing without more or less plagiary from other writers; 



