Véry different -from* the* artificial -afie formed’ /by so many authors
for, the three-toed Waders^indiscriminately^ and’ adopted undèh
thé name Cfiàxadria,dæbythe new English school, though professing
to' adhere to a, natural- arrangement-—is well /distinguished hy- its
short^'oirmoderately/so-Vrather robust bill, the hind f&e wanting,
or when present, very’sbdæfci- It fe composed -of hut eight- genera,
0>f which only hhree arç. found in North America, two aberrant,
and present,-the only typical American’, which is weiÉ.dis-'
tihguishetl by* its bill; vely shoçt- rounded, obtuse, and somewhat
1 turgid at tip. Bag-order to exemplify how different from tha,t of
anth@r«*.i®stp;,^ family, as we understand it, wd may remark that
thefhir-ds dc€mii|f asbiare scattered "by Illiger through his Campes:
très, Littorales, and LimkMæ Guider* and Latrfeilfe divided
between» their LôngirostrtfS and Pressirostres“; .by Vieillot placed in
Pedionomi, Ægiulites, Helionomi ; in Tachidrorni and Lirfidse by
Rànzani and S a y i;in Char&drictdse and Scôhpacidæ by
Our .gémi s ‘Charadrius has different limits from.those“ of perhaps
any, rtecéot or former ^uthor,. heing more extensive than ittSaany,
but mp^^®^æâèted than that of Wagler, which comprehends all
Qur tyjûêal Charaâridæ, Linné, who -made it à so rto r reoèpp^c,®
for nearly all three-to&d Waders-yybas placed in Tring'a some of
our Plovers that - are’ furnished with a rudiment of hind . toéj; and
thé same has been done t by Gmelin, Latham, Illiger, and even,
thoj^gbfite af£esfe*e$tent, by Cuvier.1/As long since restricted by*the
separation of HimaiOqpus and Cdlidrisi which are not of the same
family, and ofiLd^bnemcus, which truly is; it is much more natural.;
especially if wittpWilso»wè unite With it,- as nature dictates, thèse
species that happen’ to possess the rudiment of a four thf.toe.'
Among the earlier writers Brisson ’was the first who assigned
more natural limits to the genus whiph he .called Pluviatis', and his
two well enough 'composed genera, Pipmlalis.&nd Vanellus, include
all our Plovers. Cuvier, Temminck, Vieillot, and Ranzani placé
thp - fpür-tqéd'; 'Pjeveps;, .with, the Lapwings, Vanellus. , Savi more
.recently has, e^pced h is ,good judgment by separating them, at
least, irom.,'Vanellus, if héf does iiot unite them with Charadrius,
whi^i/hil rpÿèfessêdly iartjdciakSystem -did not allow.
; , ,I distipgùiSh'tjYè subgenera in my extensive genus Charadrius,
Cuvier and Savi aa no mere than a seetiqn
p£ m^hfittsubgenhsii o f So iotpoeihno^®© Iïèènsider thP
phomaly of the hind tjûe, the* sole characteristic of .that artificial
,’gëdfpV; affe : 1... Pluvialis, for the large mottled
and with var.iegàtédj pfemage^ Such'are
amongsi’ the threatoed the European and Aséatie C. pluvialis and
iginellus, and the American, virgirdcus (or màrmoratus)’, and among
th‘e,', four-toed the Europeo-A,siatie hipd ’ '•€»'■ gregarius, and the
(cosmopolite ■•Q, helveticus- 2. Ægialitis, Boie, or the Ring-Plovers,
W'hiA|h®yè*pbpöad white 'collar around; the ne®k. This is the
kjffifcsi. and the présent belongs to it: it
nj’ay form two 'apj$ions,. one for the semipalmated Ring-Plovers,
^Ito^>tpM;:are all eonnected at base by a membrane, and thé
pth^r for thig and the 'remaining Ring-Plovers, in which the inner
down to/the base. As for the-armed or spur-
^jngedl'iQV^s, as Well as the wattled species, all I have examined
^^eipé^eglïlÿ. similar to the armed- and wattled Lapwing, and
they-çèhstiihte in my arrangement a very natural subgenus under
fihè,'. naine V^tWapippterus, whieh group, lik# Piuvidlisl. may (Jm
^ectiohéd jhto those with thrfee and-those with four toes. This
gfppp of Mopl9ptmtsn*p&th hy its tarsus’ and wpgs, takes place
hnder,- my. p i^W '‘Vetssiellu^, and differs suhgenerieally> front the
typical specie's nimbly hy%s longer legs, add hind toe less deye-
loped, or 9ften.wlan|ing. p Pluvignus, Vieillot, distinguished by a
StOutfef;bij;l,Cndver.have.examined, hut have no doubt that it will
find its place ih my geims V oulus, where it may be united to ray
thfë%toé^ Qr.ippsslhly teeftme a snhgenus by itself. ■
vonf iv.—-t;