LOBIVANELLUS. 
301 
eggs, which are four in number, are placed with the smaller end 
inwards, and laid upon the ground by the side of some tuft of grass 
orrushes inaslight hollow made for their reception, with occasionally 
a few blades of grass placed under and around them, but as often 
as not without any sign of a nest. The ground colour of the eggs 
varies from yellowish- and olive-brown to bright deep olive-green, 
evenly spotted with deep blackish-brown and yellowish-brown, 
which latter appear beneath the surface of the shell, the majority 
of the markings being towards the larger end. They vary from 
T9 to 2 inches in length, and from T3 to 1 "4 in breadth. My 
brother has given me a most beautiful set of these eggs in which 
the ground colour is of a bright deep olive-green evenly spotted 
with deep blackish-brown. The Spur-winged Plover shows great 
anxiety for its eggs and young, fluttering off as you approach and 
using all the enticing actions in its power to draw you away from 
the spot; should a horse, cow, or any other quadruped approach, 
it uses quite different means to save its treasures, and by flying 
up in the animal’s face and flapping it with its wings it quickly 
produces the desired effect.” ( Ramsay , Ibis, 1867, Yol. iii., New 
Series, p. 419, pi. ix., fig. 2.) 
Hab. Rockingham Bay, Port Denison, Wide Bay District, 
Richmond and Clarence Rivers Districts, New South Wales, 
Interior, Victoria and South Australia. (Ramsay.) 
LOBIVANELLUS MILES, Bodd. 
(L. personatus, Gould.) 
Masked Plover. 
Gould, Handbk. Bds. Aust., Vol. ii., sp. 501, p. 220. 
“ This is a very common bird in the Cobourg Peninsula, 
inhabiting swamps, the borders of lakes and open spots among 
the mangroves, and like its near ally, is mostly seen associated 
in small families. It is rather a noisy species, frequently 
uttering a note, which is not unlike its native name, both while 
on the wing and on the ground. The task of incubation is 
