272 
CURLEWS. 
The next form, or that of the Curlews, which we 
have placed last, reminds and leads us back to 
that of the Tantalidoc or Ibis, which we saw in 
the single British representative figured on our 
Plate X. They are, like them, also birds of con- 
siderable size ; are chiefly maritime, except during 
the season of incubation ; and, at that time, return 
to the wild subalpine pastures, the prairies or step- 
pes of their respective countries, where their wild 
notes are often the only interruption that breaks 
the stillness of these barren tracts. We have them 
distributed over the world, though most abundant 
in temperate regions. 
Numexius. — Generic characters . — Bill very long, 
slender, slightly compressed, curved, the tip, 
nearly round, hard; the mandible project- 
ing over the maxilla ; nostrils linear, lateral ; 
face feathered; wings rather long, pointed; 
spurious quill rigid; legs proportionally, of 
middle length; tibiae bare for some length 
above the tarsal joint ; feet rather small ; 
toes before connected by a basal membrane ; 
hallux articulated above the plane of the 
others. 
Types, N. arquata, longirostris, &c. Cosmopolite. 
Note. — Maritime and gregarious in winter ; 
breed inland ; are clamorous when their nest 
is intruded upon. No seasonal change. 
