BRITISH BIRDS 



Their ordinary cry when on wing is a single shrill peep, and when feeding a softer 

 and less loud note. Very frequently they associate with Sanderlings, sometimes 

 with Ring-Plovers ; but although while feeding they may often be seen mingling 

 with Curlews, Redshanks, Godwits, or Oyster-Catchers, they separate from these 

 birds when put up, as their mode of flight is different." 



THE LITTLE STINT. 



Tringa minuta, Leisler. 

 Plate 66. 



The Little Stint visits the British Islands on passage in the autumn and again 

 in spring on its way from and to its breeding grounds in Northern Europe and 

 Western Siberia. In winter it ranges far and wide, when it visits Africa, India, 

 and Ceylon. 



The eggs of this little wader were unknown until Middendorf found it breeding 

 in Siberia, and the late Henry Seebohm and Mr. Harvie-Brown were the first to 

 discover the nest in Europe, near the Petchora river, in July 1875. The nest is 

 only a slight hollow in the ground, with a lining of dry leaves, etc., and contains 

 four eggs, which, except for their smaller size, are indistinguishable from the 

 Dunlin's. When on our shores in autumn the habits and manner of feeding of the 

 Little Stint are very like those of the latter bird, as it runs along the sand by 

 the water's edge in search of the small marine animals on which it lives. 



In winter the general colour of the upper parts is greyish-brown, with dusky 

 markings caused by the darker centres of the feathers. 



THE AMERICAN STINT. 

 Tringa minutilla, Vieillot. 

 Plate 66. 



There are only four recorded visits of this small species to England, two having 

 been obtained in Cornwall — October 1853 and September 1890, and the same 

 number in Devonshire, September 1869 and August 1892. It breeds in Arctic 

 America, and migrates in winter as far as Chili in South America. 



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