KILDEER PLOVER. 
79 
During the extreme droughts of summer, these birds resort 
to the gravelly channel of brooks and shallow streams, where they 
can wade about in search of aquatic insects. At the close of sum- 
mer they generally descend to the seashore, in small flocks, sel- 
dom more than ten or twelve being seen together. They are then 
more serene and silent, as well as difl[icult to be approached. 
The Kildeer is ten inches long, and twenty inches in extent ; 
the bill is black ; frontlet, chin and ring round the neck white ; 
fore part of the crown, and auriculars from the bill backwards, 
blackish olive ; eyelids bright scarlet ; eye very large and of a full 
black ; from the centre of the eye backwards a stripe of white ; 
round the lower part of the neck is a broad band of black ; below 
that a band of white, succeeded by another rounding band or cres- 
cent of black ; rest of the lower parts pure white ; crown and hind 
head light olive brown; back, scapulars and wing-coverts olive 
brown, skirted with brownish yellow ; primary quills black, streak- 
ed across the middle with white ; bastard wing tipt with white ; 
greater coverts broadly tipt with white ; rump and tail-coverts 
orange ; tail tapering, dull orange, crossed near the end with a 
broad bar of black, and tipt with orange, the two middle feathers 
near an inch longer than the adjoining ones ; legs and feet a pale 
light clay color. Thetertials, as usual in this tribe, aie veiy long, 
reaching nearly to the tips of the primaries ; exterior toe joined by 
a membrane to the middle one, as far as the first joint. 
In the spring these birds feed on the marshes ; they then be- 
come excessively fat, and are excellent eating. When lean, the 
flesh of the Kildeer is dark, dry and indifferent. 
