156 P I P I N G P L O V E R .
the colour of the plumage fades ; and it is then very difficult for you to
perceive one that may be only a few yards off, until it starts and runs or
flies before you. At- this season they are less shy than before.
During winter they are generally in good condition, and their flesh is
very delicate and savoury, although, on account of their small size, they
seldom draw the sportsman after them. Their food consists of marine
insects, minute shell-fish, and small sand worms.
RINGED PLOVER, CHARADRIUS HIATICULA, var. Wils. Amer. Ornith. vol. v. p. 3 0 .
pi. 3 7 . fig. 3 .
CHARADRIUS MELODUS, Ch. Bonaparte, Synops. of Birds of the United States, p. 296.
PIPING RINGED PLOVER, Nuttall, Manual, vol. ii. p. 1 8.
Male in Summer. Plate CCXX. Fig. 1.
Bill half the length of the head, straight, somewhat cylindrical. Upper
mandible with the dorsal line straight to the middle, then bulging a
little and curving to the tip, which projects beyond that of the lower mandible,
the sides flat and sloping at the base, convex towards the end, the
edges sharp and overlapping. Nasal groove extended to the middle of
the bill, filled with a bare membrane ; nostrils basal, linear, in the lower
part of the membrane, open, and pervious. Lower mandible with the
angle rather short, rounded, the sides at the base sloping outwards and
flat, the dorsal line ascending and slightly convex, the edges sharp and
inflected.
Head of moderate size, oblong, compressed, the forehead rounded.
Eyes large. Neck short. Body rather slender, ovate. Wings long.
Feet of moderate length, slender ; tibia bare a little above the joint; tarsus
rather compressed, covered all round with reticulated angular scales;
toes slender; the hind toe wanting; third or middle toe longest, outer
toe considerably longer than inner, all scutellate above and marginate,
the outer connected with the middle by a short membrane ; claws small,
compressed, obtuse, the rather blunt inner edge of the middle claw a little
dilated.
Plumage soft and blended; the feathers rounded, those on the back
somewhat distinct. Wings long and pointed ; primary quills tapering,
the first longest, the second a little shorter, the rest rapidly graduated ;
inner secondaries tapering and elongated, so as nearly to equal the longest
P I P I N G P L O V E R.
1 5 7
primaries. Tail of moderate length, slightly rounded, of twelve rather
narrow feathers, which taper a little towards their rounded extremities.
Bill orange in its basal half, the rest black. Iris reddish-brown ; margins
of eyelids orange. Feet brownish-yellow; claws dusky. Forehead,
sides of the face, throat, and the whole under parts, pure white. Upper
parts pale brownish-grey. A black band across the upper part of the
forehead, another surrounds the lower part of the neck, broad on the
sides, but narrow above and below, where it is formed merely by the tips
of some of the feathers. Above this is a white band over the hind neck,
also very narrow above. Primaries dusky, each with a large white patch
on a portion of the outer, and on the greater part of the inner web ; secondaries
of a lighter brown, white on the inner webs, some of those nearest
the body entirely white ; the five innermost like the back ; most of the
quills are more or less tipped with white, the primary and secondary
coverts more distinctly so. The tail-feathers may be described as white;
the second has a brown spot on the inner web towards the end, the third
a larger spot or band on both webs, and the colour enlarges on the rest,
until the middle feathers are nearly all dusky brown.
Length to end of tail 7£ inches, to end of claws 7, to end of wings 6 | ;
extent of wings 1 5 | ; wing from flexure 4^; tail 2 j 2
2 ; bill along the back
along the edge of lower mandible T
7
2 ; tarsus £\ ; middle toe -j7*> its
claw T%. Weight 3 oz.
Female in Summer. Plate CCXX. Fig. 2.
The Female is considerably smaller, but resembles the male in colouring,
only the dark bands on the forehead and neck are narrower, and of
a dusky brown tint.
Length to end of tail 7 inches, extent of wings 14£.
The young, previous to their first moult, have the bill black, the feet
flesh-coloured, with dusky claws. The colours of the plumage are nearly
the same as in the adult, but there is no dark band on the forehead, and
that on the lower neck is merely indicated by a brownish-grey patch on
each side. The neck is surrounded by a collar of downy white feathers,
and the tips and margins of the feathers of the head and back are pale
ochre.