142 DUNG HUNTER. 



with their small ends touching- each other as a centre. It is greatly- 

 attached to its young- ; will use various deceptions to save them from 

 men or dogs ; sometimes will nutter along the ground as if crippled, 

 and if pursued will fly to a little distance, distend all its feathers, and 

 seem to tumble head over heels repeatedly, till it has enticed its enemy 

 to a distance from its young, and then it flies off. 



In the autumn they become gregarious, and continue in small flocks 

 all winter, mixing sometimes with purrs and dunlins. We have fre- 

 quently observed a variety of this bird without any black about the 

 head and breast, and the bill and legs dusky ; others seem inclined to 

 those markings, and a tinge of orange on the bill and legs. From these 

 gradations it whould appear that such are birds of the first year not 

 maturely feathered, and are not unfrequently shot in company with the 

 others. We suspect the Alexandrinus of Linnaeus to be this bird in 

 one of its changes. 



*We took an egg from the nest of this bird, and after carrying it a 

 great many miles, were surprised to find the young one in it alive, and 

 actually chirping at the end of three days, notwithstanding it had been 

 deprived of its accustomed warmth. This is a proof that eggs, or rather 

 the embryo young, are not easily destroyed by moderate cold, compara- 

 tively speaking, as relative to the temperature of a breeding bird, at a 

 certain period of incubation. A small crack in the shell had given the 

 young the means of respiration, and consequently of uttering sound. 

 The Ringed Plover is entirely a shore bird, residing there the whole 

 year, and picking up its sustenance from the rejectamenta of the sea. 

 It is probable those of the northern parts of Great Britain, go south- 

 ward after the breeding season. Mr. Bewick remarks that these 

 birds are common in all the northern countries ; and that they migrate 

 into Britain in the spring, and depart in autumn. From the northern 

 parts of England they probably migrate, but in the southern parts many 

 are observed throughout the year.* 



DUNBIRD and DUNCUR.— Names for the Pochard. 



DUN CROW.— A name for the Crow. 



DUNG BIRD.— A name for the Dung Hunter. 



DUN DIVER. — A name for the female Merganser. 



DUNG HUNTER (Lestris parasiticus > Boie.) 



*Lestris crepidatus, Temm. Man. d'Orn. 1st edit. p. 515. — Larus parasiticus, Linn. 

 Syst. 1. p. 226. 10 — Lath. Ind. Orn. 2. p. 819. sp. 15.— Cataracta parasitica, 

 Retz. Faun. Suec. p. 160. No. 122 — Stercorarius longicandus. Briss. 6. p. 155. 



3 Le Lattic a long queue, Buff. Ois. 8. p. 445 — pi. Enl. 762 Arctic Bird, 



Edw Gmel. Syst. t. 148. an old male — Arctic Gull, Lath. Syn. 6. p. 389. — 



Arct. Zool.2. p. 459.— Lewin's Br.Birds,6. 207 — Wale. Syn. 1. 116 Arctic 



Skua, Flem. Br. Anim. p. 138.— Temm. Man. d'Orn. 2. p. 797. 



