612 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



by adults, and conspicuous only at close range. Said by a visitor 

 to United States from Old World to be identical with Common 

 Sandpiper in manners, notes and appearance. (J. T. Nichols.) 



Breeding-habits. — Haunts neighbourhood of water, either rivers 

 or lakes and pools. Nest. — Sometimes in grass, but at times on 

 sandbanks, in cornfields or on rocky ground, slightly made of bents, 

 moss and grasses in depression of ground. Eggs. — Normally 4, 

 pyriform, pale clay-coloured or greyish in ground with dark 

 chocolate -brown and ashy-grey markings. Average of 25 eggs, 

 33.1x23.9. Max. : 35x23.3 and 34.1x24.8. Min. : 31.3x22.6 mm. 

 Breeding -season. — Second half May and June. Incubation. — No 

 details available. 



Food. — Includes insects, small worms, mollusca (snails) and has 

 been seen to take fry of a fish (Sicydium plumieri). 



Distribution. — British Isles. — Very rare vagrant. Many recorded 

 (cf. Saunders, p. 606) but only following can be admitted : Female 

 near Finea (W. Meath) Feb. 2, 1899 (Saunders, p. 605*). Pair near 

 Lydd (Kent), May 5, 1904 (J. L. Bonhote, Bull. B.O.C., xiv, p. 84). 

 Female Shoreham (Sussex) Nov. 27, 1908 (J. B. Nichols, Brit. B. y 

 in, p. 377). One Hebden Bridge (Yorks.) about 1899 (W. Greaves, 

 Nat., 1911, p. 100 ; Brit. B., iv, pp. 319, 369). One Whitby (Yorks.), 

 March 29, 1849 (admitted by T. H. Nelson, Birds Yorks., p. 628, 

 doubted by J. H. Gurney, Rambles of a Nat., p. 256). Two Pevensey 

 (Sussex) May 23 and 24, 1913 (H. W. Ford-Lindsay, Brit. B., vn, 

 p. 58). 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Breeds in N. America from north-west 

 Alaska and Newfoundland to south California, Arizona, Texas, 

 Louisiana, and south Carolina ; winters from California, Louisiana, 

 and south Carolina to south Brazil and Peru. Stragglers have 

 occurred in Europe (Heligoland), west Germany, Lake of Constance,, 

 and Belgium. 



TRINGA GLAREOLA 



407. Tringa glareola L.— THE WOOD-SANDPIPER. 



Tringa Glareola Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 149 (1758 — Europe. 



Restricted typical locality : Sweden). 



Tringa grallatoris (corrected to grallatoria in errata) Montagu, Suppl. Orau 



Diet., App. S, "Sandpiper-Long-legged" (1813 — England. New name 



for glareola, which author thought doubtful). 



Totanus glareola (Gmelin), Yarrell, in, p. 463 ; Saunders, p. 607. 



Description. — Adult male and female. Winter. — Feathers of crown 

 sooty ; nape and upper-mantle sooty-brown, feathers tipped and 

 edged ashy -white ; mantle and scapulars same, feathers notched 

 white, scapulars (and sometimes some feathers of mantle) notched 

 and with a subterminal bar of black or black-brown ; back and rump 

 sooty-brown, feathers edged white ; sides of rump white ; upper 

 tail-coverts white, long feathers mostly irregularly marked black- 



