22 
MANUAL OF TAXIDERMY. 
out the more open country, from Massachusetts to 
Texas, and the plumed California and allied species 
occur in the southwest, frequenting the thickets of 
the prairies, or along the mountain-sides. 
Charadriid^e : Plovers. — These are, as a rule, 
maritime birds, especially during the southward 
migrations, but many of the species breed in the 
interior, and the kildeer and mountain plovers are 
always more common on bodies of fresh water. 
None of the species are, however, found far from 
water, but they all alight in dry fields in search 
of food. 
HiEMATOPODIDiE : OYSTER-CATCHERS AND TuRN- 
stones. — All these birds inhabit the seacoast. 
They occur in oyster-beds or among rocks. 
Recurvirostridze : Avocets and Stilts. — 
Both these species are birds of the interior, being 
found in the south and west in the vicinity of 
water. 
Phaleropodid^e : Phaleropes. — These singu- 
lar birds are found off the coast, often far out at 
sea during winter, but, oddly enough, breed in the 
interior, nesting throughout the northwest and 
north. They are, however, occasionally found on 
the coast during the northward migration, especially 
during storms. 
