All rights reserved. January, 1918. 
BIRD NOTES: 
THE 
JOURNAL OF THE FOREIGN BIRD CLUB. 
The Grey Plover, (Squatarola Helvetica), 
By W. Shore Baily. 
Tliis handsome shore bird occasionally finds its way into 
onr members' aviaries, and where these are large and roomy 
and there is not too much cover, they are quite a desirable bird, 
as they are easy to cater for, and are of course quite hardy. My 
first introduction to them was many years a.qo. when I was 
residini^- in the Isle of Man. At that time I was an enthusiastic 
collector of our shore birds and water fowl, not, I am sorry to 
say, for avicultural reasons, but for the far less interesting 
purpose of a museum collection. It was one fine May morning" 
that I found myself before sunrise on Languess point, armed 
with a breach loader and a pair of field-glasses. The sun rises 
early in the middle of May and to see it rise from a point, some 
four miles from one's home, means turning out of bed at a time 
when many people in our larger cities would be just about turn- 
ing in, but to a sportsman or collector this is a small matter, 
and usually the delightfully bracing morning air, and the imdis- 
turbed view obtained of the numerous flocks of sea-fowl, shore 
birds, etc., all busy at their breakfasts, quite recompenses one 
for the effort. On the morning in question I had passed numer- 
ous flocks of Black-headed Gulls, Ringed Plovers and Dunlins, 
but had met with nothing of especial interest, when my 
attention was called to a low, plaintive whistle coming from far 
out to sea. The call was quite new to me, although I had an ex- 
tensive acquaintance with the notes of many of our shore birds, 
and could bring most of them within reach of the gun by 
whistling. This call, coming as it did from far out to sea, and 
from the midst of a slight sea haze, soimded very plaintive, and 
when the birds at last came into sight, and settled on an 
outlying rock, I lost no time in bringing my field glasses to bear 
