“THE BIRDS OF DEVON.’ 25 
Golden Plover (p. 299). 
A favourite place for Golden Plover used to be, and probably still is, 
Hatherleigh Moor :— 
“ Hatherleigh Moor, 
For Hatherleigh Poor, 
For evermore,” 
runs the local tristich. Sending out a gamekeeper at dawn, we used 
frequently to have a bunch of these delicious birds brought in. 
Grey Plover (p. 301). 
Mr. E. A. 8. Elliot shot a splendid male, on May 12th, 1893, out of a 
flock of about a dozen, and with the same shot obtained a male Knot in 
summer plumage. 
Oyster-catcher (p. 308). 
This conspicuous bird seems to have become more frequent at Exmouth 
than formerly, as we saw five there September 17th, 1893, and twelve in 
a flock September 24th, 1894. 
Grey Phalarope (p. 315). 
Some Grey Phalaropes occurred as early as the end of August at the 
mouth of the Taw in 1892. A very large example was shot at Exmouth 
in November 1894. It is an interesting fact in the history of this bird 
that the male, which is smaller than the female, hatches the eggs and 
brings up the young brood, as we learn from Mr. R. Collett, in his ‘ Bird- 
Life in Arctic Norway.’ 
Mr. E. A. S. Elliot, in a communication to the ‘ Field’ during October 
1891, gives an account of the number of Grey Phalaropes that visited the 
neighbourhood of Kingsbridge that autumn. He writes :—‘ I drove out 
to the coast the morning of the 15th, but was scarcely prepared for the 
extraordinary number of Phalaropes that I saw. I first noticed one 
lying basking in the sun, under shelter of a bank, on the confines of 
Milton Ley ; then, as I moved on, I counted eight seeking shelter from 
the gale that was blowing, amongst the sedges, ever and anon coming to 
shore. As I came on to Huish Ley I found others swimming about the 
margins of the water quite fearlessly, and apparently undisturbed by my 
approach. As one of the birds rose and flew over the sandbanks towards 
the sea I followed, little expecting the view in store. The sea was 
tumbling in mountains high, but yet there, on the verge of each succeed- 
ing billow, might be counted scores of Phalaropes flitting over the 
breaking surf, whenever they came too near to shore, and settling further 
out. There must have been hundreds all along the bay, for as it was 1 
