BLACK -"WINGED STILT. 
253 
Europe it is perhaps also a visitant, but its real, or 
any abundant locality, does not appear to be well 
ascertained. The time of their appearance in Britain 
varies, though it is generally in spring or winter ; 
that, however, from which Mr. Yarrell derived his 
drawing, as well as another, were procured in the 
London market, during the month of July. A 
curious habit was noticed by the Rev. R. Lubbock, 
in a specimen killed in Norfolk : — “ When shot it 
was standing in a shallow pool of water, mid-leg 
deep, apparently snapping at insects in the air as 
they buzzed round it.”* 
An African specimen before us is in length to 
the end of the tail, fourteen inches, to the extremity 
of the centre claws, nineteen ; the unfeathered part 
of the tibiae is two inches and three-quarters in 
length, the tarsus four and one-quarter ; the whole 
plumage, except the wings and centre of the back 
or mantle, is pure white, slightly tinted with grey 
on the occiput, and having the centre tail-feathers 
of a pale broccoli-brown ; the tail, in this specimen, 
is slightly forked, the outer feathers exceeding the 
others more than one fourth of an inch ; the under 
coverts equal the tail in length ; the centre of the 
back and tertials approach nearest in tint to dark 
clove-brown, glossed -with green ; the whole of the 
wings are rich glossy-black with green reflections ; 
the legs and feet are described to be pink,+ and 
vermilion-red in the young birds orange. 
* Yarrell, ii. p. 561. + Yarrell. J Selby. 
