THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
of the latter tipped with white ; primary-quills also dark brown on the outer webs 
and at the tips, much paler and incHning to white on the inner webs, some of the 
inner primaries white on the outer webs towards the base ; secondaries for the 
most part white with brown at the tips, the long innermost secondaries lilce the 
back ; upper tail- coverts rather darker than the back, the lateral ones broadly 
fringed and tipped with white ; middle tail-feathers dark brown with white on the 
outer webs near the base and narrowly fringed with white, the outer feathers 
similar but paler ; fore-head, sides of face, and entire under-surface white including 
the under tail-coverts, axillaries, and under wing-coverts. 
The bird in autumn differs from the summer and winter-plumages in having 
the dark brown feathers on the crown of the head, back, and scapulars fringed 
with grey ; feathers on the side of the neck and breast brown with grey edgings ; 
throat and abdomen white. 
Nest. A depression in the ground. 
Eggs. “ Clutch four ; the eggs ovoconical, somewhat oblong ; have the back-ground 
green, more or less bright or a little darker, with the lower spots reddish-grey, the 
middle ones brown and the upper ones dark or blackish-brown ; on the eggs with 
light back-ground the spots are deeper and vice-versa ; the spots in general small, 
more or less round, mixed with streaks, numerous and almost equally distributed 
over all the surface ; axis 38-45 mm., diameter 26 ‘ to 26.5.’ ” (Taczanowski.) 
This bird was first added to the Australian List in 1892 by Newton {Rec. 
Austr. Mus., Vol. II., p. 22) from specimens obtained at Sandy Cove, New 
South Wales, on April 20th, 1844, by Macgillivray. 
In 1895, Campbell {Proc. Roy. Soc. Viet.) recorded it from North-west 
Australia, from specimens collected by Carter ; and I have skins from 
Northern Territory as well as West Australia. 
Mr. Tom Carter sends me the following : “ The Sanderling was first noted 
and obtained by me at Point Cloates on the 18th July, 1894, when I shot one 
from amongst a party of waders. Since that date I regularly observed them 
about Point Cloates and they could be seen in almost any month of the year, 
but were more numerous in the summer months. I have shot them in April, 
July, September, October, November, and December in various years. I have 
also seen odd birds near Albany in February.” 
Middendorff (Z.c.) says this bird “arrived on the Taimyr River (74° N. lat.) 
on 4th of June and was seen as far as 75° N. lat. It became more plentiful 
as we advanced north, but was always in small bands of 5 or 6 birds, never 
in flocks like Tringa cinclus with which it often associates. 
“ At a distance it could easily be distinguished from the latter bird, 
through its habit of running along by the edge of the water and not right in it. 
“ I conjecture that this bird breeds preferably on the shore of the Polar 
Sea. One specimen was shot on the Boganida on 8th June and a second on 
the 10th.” 
“ This bird occurs at Am oy and on the South China coast only in 
September, October, April and May, its southward destination being apparently 
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