THE SLENDER-BILLED CURLEW. 671 



longest, 3rd 4-7 mm. shorter, 4th 10-19 shorter, 5th 25-32 shorter,. 

 6th 41-51 shorter. Longest inner secondary between 4th and 6th 

 primaries. Bill of moderate length, decurved, nasal groove and 

 groove in lower mandible extending about two-thirds length of 

 culmen. Other structure as in Curlew. 



Soft parts. — Bill brown, lower mandible flesh at base ; legs 

 leaden -grey ; iris brown (Dresser). 



Characters. — No subspecies. Smaller size, lighter coloration of 

 upper -parts, white back, heart-shaped and oval spots on under- 

 pays distinguish this species from Curlew. 



Breeding-habits. — Haunts open marshes or wet steppe adjoining^ 

 forests. Nest. — Shallow depression in ground on dry hillock or 

 patch in marsh, lined with dry grasses. Eggs. — Normally 4, pyri- 

 form, greyish-olive to ochreous or reddish-brown with dark mark- 

 ings of greyish-brown and ashy shell marks. Ushakov gives measure- 

 ments of 4 eggs 64.9x46.9, 65.6x47.1, 64.5x46 and 64x45 mm. 

 Breeding -season. — End May to June 10th. Incubation. — Little 

 known, but apparently female usually incubates while male keeps 

 guard. Single brooded. 



Food. — Insects (including Licinus silphoides), worms and small 

 mollusca. 



Distribution. — England. — Four or more. Young male and female 

 Sept. 21, and adult male Sept. 23, 1910, from " small flock " near 

 Brookland (Kent) (ut supra). Male Sept. 10, 1914, Jury's Gap 

 (Kent) (H. W. Ford-Lindsay, Brit. B., vm, p. 150). 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Breeds in west Siberia. Winters in 

 Mediterranean countries, as far west as south France and Algeria 

 and in Egypt. Found on passage in Russia, Hungary and Austria, 

 east to Persia and Transcaspia ; occasionally further west, four 

 times in Germany, once Heligoland, twice Belgium, five times 

 Holland, in north France and Switzerland. 



Genus CAPELLA Frenzel.* 



Capella Frenzel, Beschr. Vog. u. Eyer Wittenberg, p. 28, and in list 

 (1801 — Type : Capella coelestis — gallinago). Gallinago Koch, 1816. 



Bill very long, slender, upper mandible somewhat soft before 

 the tip and flexible. Eyes large and high up in skull, but less so 

 than in Scolopax. Ear under middle of eye (in most other birds 

 further back). Legs short, tarsus about one -fourth length of wing, 

 in front and behind scutellated ; lower part of tibia bare. Toes 

 long and slender, without webs. Hind toe well developed with 

 slender claw projecting beyond toe. Wings long and pointed, first 

 developed primary longest. Tail more or less rounded, middle 



* Unfortunately Capella, 1801 has priority over Gallinago, 1816. — E.EL 



