EUDROMIAS AUSTRALIS (Gould) 



A USTRALIAN DOTTREL. Genus : Eudromias. 



WE are indebted to Captain Sturt for the first information concerning this somewhat rare bird. He 

 found it inhabiting the low hills and plains of the interior, much after the fashion of its European 

 prototype, E. Morinellus. "This singular bird," he says, "made its appearance in 1841 suddenly on the 

 plains of Adelaide, seeming to have come from the north. It occupied the sand hills at the edge of the 

 Mangrove Swamps, and fed round the puddles of water on the plains. This bird afforded my friend, Mr. 

 Torrens, an abundant harvest, as it was numerous round his house ; but although some few have visited 

 South Australia every subsequent year they have never appeared in such numbers as on the first occasion. 

 It runs very fast along the ground. Mr. Browne and I met, or rather crossed, several flights of these 

 birds in August of 1845, going south. They were on the large open plains, and were very wild." 



Dr. E. P. Ramsay writes of the Australian Dottrel : — " The habitat of the species is the 

 interior portion of the province of South Australia, and the interior of New South Wales ; but as far 

 as is yet known, it is nowhere plentiful ; sometimes it is met with in the Melbourne markets during the 

 game season, and is considered a rare bird by the dealers. Mr. E. G. Vickery has been fortunate enough 

 to obtain the nest and eggs during a surveying trip in the Darling River District, near Wilcannia. The 

 eggs were placed on the ground among a few loose stones, near the summit of a small hillock or ' rise ' 

 in the level country, and placed on a little mound about 2 inches high, probably an old ant-hill. They 

 were three in number; a pair measures as follows: (a) length, 1.45 x 1.05; (6) length, 1.46 x 1.03. In 

 form they are rather less pointed than the usual pyriform shape of the Plover's eggs ; the ground colour 

 is of a deep rich cream or buff, sparingly sprinkled all over with irregular spots and some elongated 

 crooked markings of chocolate-black, with a few minute dots and dashes of a lighter tint, the markings 

 look black in certain lights, but of a chocolate tint in others. Specimens in Mr. Bennett's collection 

 were taken during 1 the month of October on the Lachlan River, near Mossgiel." 



This is a pretty little bird ; the sexes are alike in size, but the plumage of the female is slightly 

 less distinct than in the male ; the conspicuous brown hood of the latter being replaced by a fainter brown 

 one, and the crescentic black markings on the chest is also wanting. Individual males vary somewhat, 

 too ; the plumage in some assuming a reddish chestnut tint on the abdomen and flanks. 



Forehead and all upper surfaces, light sandy buff; a hood of dark brown encircling the face, the 

 same colour appearing as a torso round the neck, and ending in a crescentic patch on the breast ; throat, 

 buffy-white ; chest, flanks, and under surface of wings buff, changing into reddish chestnut on the 

 abdomen ; vent and under-tail coverts white ; back and wings buffy -brown mottled, the mottlings growing- 

 more distinct on the lower part of the back, primaries brownish-black, with sandy buff shafts, and all but 

 the first four broadly margined with buff; tail, brownish-black, centre feathers margined with buff, the 

 outer ones with white ; bill, dark olive-brown ; feet, yellowish-brown. 



Total length, 7^ inches. 



Habitats : New South Wales, Interior, Victoria and South Australia. {Ramsay.) 



