to breed in Britain until the end of the sixteenth century, and reaches
North Africa, India, and China on the winter migration, is ashy-grey, with
white cheeks, nape, and sides of the neck, black primaries and inner
secondaries; the crown being bare, with blackish bristles and red warty
skin. _G. lilfordi_ of East Siberia is a lighter race. _G. canadensis_ is a
smaller species, hardly different from _G. mexicana_, the "Sandhill Crane"
of the United States, which is slaty-grey, with a brownish wash. _G.
monachus_, another similar form from Eastern Asia, has all the head white
except the bare portion. _G. nigricollis_ of Koko-nor has the feathered
part of the head, the upper neck, the wings, tail, and inner secondaries
black; _G. japonensis_ of North Eastern Asia is white, with grey-black
throat and fore-neck, the dark colour extending to a point on the
hind-neck. _G._ (_Limnogeranus_) _americana_, the Whooping Crane of the
United States and Mexico, is pure white with black primaries, the bristly
head, lores, and cheeks being bare, and covered with warty red skin. _G._
(_Sarcogeranus_) _leucogeranus_, the Asiatic White Crane, is entirely
white, except for the black primaries, and has all the front of the head
bare, the red skin extending beyond the eye, and showing a few scattered
hairs. This bird ranges at certain seasons to South-East Europe. _G._
(_Antigone_) _collaris_ of India and the Caspian is light grey, with
brownish-black primaries, a white ring round the lower neck, and white
inner secondaries; the grey-green crown is bare, the occiput and upper neck
are red and papillose, with black bristles on the latter. The Burmo-Malay
_G. sharpii_ is distinguished by the absence of white; while both enjoy in
common the name Sarus. _G._ (_A._) _australasiana_, the "Native Companion"
of East Australia, has the neck feathered, and possesses a red and green
gular pouch, covered with the same black hairs as the face, the general
coloration resembling that of its congeners. _G._ (_Pseudogeranus_)
_leucauchen_, the "Tan-cho" or national Crane of the Japanese, part of the
crown and the cheeks bare, warty, and red, with black hairs. often seen in
their clever drawings, is grey, with white hind-crown, nape, throat, and
inner secondaries; the rest of the wing-quills and the tip of the tail are
black, the fore-part of the crown and the cheeks bare, warty, and red, with
black hairs.
{255}[Illustration: FIG. 51.–Crowned Crane. _Balearica pavonina._ × ⅛.]
It is found westward to Lake Baikal, and southward in winter to the Yangtse
basin. _G._ (_Bugeranus_) _carunculata_, the Wattled Crane of South Africa,
is slaty-coloured, becoming blacker towards the tail, and browner towards
the mantle; the cheeks and the whole neck are white, with elongated chest
plumes; a lappet, with white feathering, hangs from each side of the
throat; and the fore-part of the head is covered with bare red papillose
skin. _G._ (_Tetrapteryx_) _paradisea_, the "Stanley" Crane of the same
districts, is leaden blue, with black ends to the inner secondaries, and a
white crown; the head is entirely feathered, and the chest plumes elongated
as in the next species. _G._ (_Anthropoïdes_) _virgo_, the "Demoiselle"
Crane, inhabits South Europe, and extends to Central Asia and North China,
migrating to {256}Northern Africa and India in winter. It is silvery-grey,
with white ear-tufts, black sides of the head, neck, chest, primaries, and
tips to the inner secondaries. _Balearica pavonina_, the Crowned Crane of
the northern Ethiopian Region, is greenish-black above and dark grey below,
most of the feathers being lanceolate; the neck is delicate grey all round,
the secondaries are chestnut–the inner being somewhat decomposed; white and
yellow shew on the wing-coverts; a spreading tuft of twisted yellow and
white bristles with black tips surmounts the occiput, while the sides of
the face are bare–white above and pink below, and the throat is covered
with black down. There is a very small throat-wattle in this form, but _B.
chrysopelargus_, the Kaffir Crane of South Africa, has it much larger and
chiefly red, differing moreover in its greyer plumage, and white
cheek-patch with only a border of crimson above. In _B. gibbericeps_ of
East Africa, the bare skin of the face extends almost to the nape.
In Cranes the sexes are alike; but the young are browner, with rusty or
buff tips to the feathers, or even with downy instead of more or less naked
heads, as in adults. Immature birds lack the elongated plumes. The bill is
usually greenish-grey, brown, or black, at times with a little red, but it
is yellow in _Limnogeranus_; the feet vary from greyish- or bluish-black to
dull green or flesh-colour; the iris is generally crimson, orange, or
yellow.
The Upper Eocene of Hampshire furnishes the fossil _Geranopsis_ as well as
_Grus_, the Italian Eocene _Palaeogrus_, that of Wyoming four species of
_Aletornis_; Grus occurs, moreover, in the Miocene of France, the Pliocene
of Attica and the United States, while _G. primigenia_ of the French and
Italian Plistocene, with _G. melitensis_ of the Zebbug cave in Malta,
complete the list.
Fam. III. ARAMIDAE.–In this group, as in the _Psophiidae_ (p. 257), the
osteology and pterylography are Crane-like, the digestive organs and style
of plumage Rail-like; a link being thus formed between the two Families.
The long, hard bill is slender and compressed, with slightly curved tip;
the tibia is partly bare, the metatarsus scutellated. The wing has eleven
primaries and some dozen secondaries. The long tongue is said to end in
horny filaments, the trachea is sometimes convoluted in males, the nostrils
are pervious.
_Aramus pictus_, the Clucking Hen or Limpkin of the Greater Antilles, South
Florida, and Central America, is chocolate-brown {257}with white flecks;
the upper parts are glossed with bronzy-purple, the bill is greenish. _A.
scolopaceus_, the Carau, Courlan, Lamenting Bird, or Crazy Widow, ranging
from Guiana to Argentina, has only the head and neck streaked. Generally
solitary or found in family-parties, these birds conceal themselves by day
among reeds or damp forest-vegetation; they rise with difficulty after a
preliminary run, and take low, brief flights, the legs hanging down and the
wings flapping slowly, while the latter are elevated for a descent. They
walk quickly and in stately fashion, limping and jerking the tail; at night
they roost on trees. The resonant, melancholy wail is varied by a clucking
note, or by an angry cry when breeding. The shallows of streams or marshes
are diligently searched for molluscs, which the formation of the beak
enables the bird easily to open or break, but small reptiles, insects, and
worms are also eaten. The flat nest of herbage, placed among reeds,
contains from ten to twelve white eggs, as large as those of a Turkey,
clouded with pale brown and purple.[175]
[Illustration: FIG. 52.–Trumpeter. _Psophia crepitans._ × ⅙.]
Fam. IV. PSOPHIIDAE.–The so-called Trumpeters form a single genus of six
species inhabiting tropical South America, and somewhat resemble
long-necked and long-legged Fowls, the beak being gallinaceous and the
tibia partly bare. The long metatarsi are scutellated in front; the wings
and tail are short, the ten primaries, {258}just equalling the twelve
secondaries. The nostrils are pervious. The downy nestlings are chestnut
streaked with grey.
_Psophia crepitans_, the Agami, ranging from British Guiana to Amazonia, is
a black bird with velvety plumage on the head and neck, and lax feathering
below; a golden-green and violet sheen adorns the lower fore-neck, a rusty
brown patch crosses the back and wing-coverts, the bare orbits are pinkish,
the beak is greenish or greyish, and the legs are variously stated to be
bright green or flesh-coloured. _P. napensis_ of Ecuador has the sheen on
the neck dull purple, _P. leucoptera_ of Peru and Upper Amazonia lacks the
brown above, and has the inner wing-coverts and inner secondaries white,
these feathers being ochraceous in _P. ochroptera_ of the right bank of the
Rio Negro. _P. viridis_ of Amazonia–from Pará up the right bank of the Rio
Madeira to the Rio Mamoré–perhaps identical with _P. obscura_, has the back
and inner secondaries glossed with green. The sexes are similar.
These birds love moist forests, and sometimes form flocks of three hundred
individuals; they are so sociable and easily tamed that the natives use
them to protect poultry. They perch, but seldom fly, and run swiftly with a
peculiar gait, while they swim on an emergency. The deep-toned
ventriloquistic, but not strictly trumpeting, cry is uttered with widely
opened beak; the food consists of fruit, corn, and insects. The nest, said
to be at the foot of a tree, contains creamy- or greyish-white eggs, like
those of a Bantam.
Fam. V. CARIAMIDAE.–These birds have given rise to much discussion, and
have been placed by several authors in the Accipitres, near the
Secretary-Bird, which they somewhat resemble in their erect carriage,
general appearance, and habits. The beak is short, broad, and slightly
hooked, the neck is rather long, the legs decidedly so; the tibia is
partially bare, the metatarsus is entirely scutellated, the claws are sharp
and curved. The wings are short, with fourteen elongated secondaries and
ten primaries; the long, graduated tail has twelve rectrices. The nostrils
are pervious. The internal anatomy and pterylosis are Gruine, an aftershaft
is present, and the downy young are either grey and brown (_Cariama_) or
rufous and black (_Chunga_). _Cariama cristata_, the Seriemá, or Crested
Screamer (p. 110), extending from Pernambuco to Paraguay and Matto Grosso,
is ochreous-grey above with zigzag umber markings, and whitish below with
brown stripes. Vertical feathers on the lores form a conspicuous crest,
while those of the neck and throat {259}are long and loose; interrupted
white bands cross the remiges, and the bases and tips of the lateral
rectrices. The iris is yellow, the beak and feet are red, the naked orbits
greenish. The female is yellower, and exhibits less crest. _Chunga
burmeisteri_, the Chuñia of Tucuman and Catamarca in Argentina, is smaller
and darker, with shorter legs and little crest; it has a broad white
superciliary streak, and two wide black bars on the tail-feathers, except
the median pair. The bill and feet are black, the iris is grey.
[Illustration: FIG. 53.–Seriemá. _Cariama cristata._ × ⅐.]
Both species are chiefly diurnal, the former frequenting the high grass of
the open "campos" in pairs and parties of five or six, the latter forests
or bushy districts; they roost on trees, {260}stalk about in stately
fashion, stoop when running, and fly a little when hard pressed. The
barking or screaming cry is chiefly heard towards dusk; the food consists
of small mammals, snakes, lizards, snails, worms, insects and their larvae,
as well as berries, _Chunga_ preferring the insect diet. Easily
domesticated, and in Brazil protected by custom, these birds will guard
their owners' fowls; while the male at times incubates and shews off to the
females in spring, like a Bustard. _Cariama_ builds a nest of twigs in low
trees or bushes; _Chunga_ generally chooses the ground; but in either case
the young soon leave their quarters; the two eggs have a pale ground-colour
with rufous blotches, as in so many Rails. The Seriemá has been hatched in
the Zoological Society's Gardens in London.
The fossil _Phororhachos_ and certain others of the so-called Stereornithes
(p. 44) probably belong here.
Fam. VI. OTIDIDAE.–The Bustards are here admitted as a Family of the
Gruiformes, though many writers have preferred to refer them to the
Limicolae, and the question is by no means finally settled. The head is
flat, the neck thick, the bill somewhat blunt and depressed, being either
short, as in _Otis_ and _Trachelotis_, or longer, as in _Neotis_ and
_Lissotis_. The metatarsus varies much, the length for instance being
comparatively great in _Houbaropsis_, and small in _Otis tetrax_, while
both surfaces are covered with reticulated scales; the short, stout toes
have flattish nails, and the hallux is absent, as in many Limicoline forms.
The wings are moderate, with the secondaries almost equal to the primaries,
the latter–which are acuminate in _Sypheotis_–being eleven in number, and
the former about twenty; the tail, of medium length, has a more or less
rounded outline, and possesses from fourteen to twenty rectrices.
Ornamental plumes are characteristic of this group, and take the form of
decided crests on the crown and nape, or on the latter alone, in all the
genera except _Otis_, _Neotis_, _Lissotis_, _Trachelotis_, and _Sypheotis_;
the last-named, however, has elongated cheek-feathers with bare shafts and
spatulate webs. The plumes of the throat and fore-neck are lengthened and
shield the breast in _Houbaropsis_ and _Eupodotis_, those of the sides of
the neck form a ruff in _Houbara_; while _Otis_ is remarkable for the
prolonged ear-coverts, and for the tuft of long bristly feathers on each
side of the base of the mandible in the male.
The nostrils are pervious, the tongue is sagittate, the furcula {261}is
Y-shaped, and often ancylosed with the sternum, the syrinx is
tracheo-bronchial. An after-shaft is present, and the down, which is
uniform in the young only, is in them mottled with black and lighter tints.
A most remarkable phenomenon, moreover, is the gular pouch, opening under
the tongue, found in the male of some examples of _Otis tarda_ during the
breeding season. This pouch becomes very small or vanishes altogether at
other times of the year, and seems to be restricted to adult birds.
Similar, but smaller, processes have been observed in _Eupodotis kori_, _E.
edwardsi_ and, it is said, _Otis tetrax_; while dilatations of the
oesophagus have been recorded in _E. australis_ and _Neotis denhami_.
[Illustration: FIG. 54.–Great Bustard. _Otis tarda._ × ⅑ or ⅒.]
_Otis tarda_, the Great Bustard, which, as a native, only became extinct in
Norfolk about 1838, used to extend from East Lothian to Dorset, but is now
merely an occasional visitor to Britain. The upper parts are mottled with
rufous, buff, and {262}blackish-brown, the head is blue-grey, with long
white bristles at the base of the mandible, the lower surface is white,
relieved in the male by a tawny gorget for a short time during the breeding
season. The primaries are black, most of the secondaries and wing-coverts
white. Some other Bustards seem to have a similar vernal change of plumage.
The female is smaller and has no bristles. _O. tetrax_, the Little Bustard,
a straggler to our shores, is somewhat like the last species in colour, but
has the cheeks and throat grey, bordered by a white line, and below this
comes a broad black collar divided in front by a median white band in the
nesting time. The female is brown and black, with white breast and no
collar. The remaining members of the Family vary considerably in pattern of
colour, being spotted, streaked, or vermiculated above, and being
occasionally very dark; the head and the lower parts, moreover, are not
uncommonly quite black, or the latter may be greyish-blue, as in
_Trachelotis coerulescens_. The bill and feet are usually yellow, more
seldom greyish or dusky. Females and young exhibit a more uniform mixture
of brown, black, and buff, while rufous bases to the feathers are
characteristic of the group.
Bustards are Old World birds, reaching eastwards to Australia, where
_Eupodotis australis_ is called the "Native Turkey." _E. edwardsi_ inhabits
the plains of India, _E. arabs_ extends from Arabia to North Africa, and
_E. kori_ from the East to the South of that continent. _Otis_ ranges over
South and Central Europe, and thence to North Africa, inhabiting also
Mid-Asia to North-West India, the Yangtze-Kiang River and Japan. _Houbara
undulata_, the African Ruffed Bustard, reaches from the Canaries,[176]
through the Mediterranean basin to about Armenia; its congener _H.
macqueeni_, which strays westward to Britain, being resident in Persia,
North India and Central Asia. _Houbaropsis bengalensis_ and _Sypheotis
aurita_ are the Florican and Lesser Florican of India; _Lophotis_,
_Compsotis_, _Heterotetrax_, _Neotis_, _Lissotis_, and _Trachelotis_
inhabit the Ethiopian Region. The members of the Family are to some extent
migratory, and perhaps the Great Bustard was partly so of old in Britain.
The members of this Family flock in winter, and occasionally form small
parties at other seasons, the males being very possibly polygamous, though
the fact is hardly proved. Typically inland birds, they haunt dry grassy
and sandy plains, or cultivated ground {263}where the crops are low, yet
sometimes they choose more bushy flats, or stony tops of elevated ridges.
Their flight is prolonged and often rapid, though invariably heavy, the
neck and legs being outstretched; the Great Bustard rises from the ground
slowly, the Little Bustard with a rattling noise, but they are frequently
loth to leave it, crouching to escape detection on the similarly coloured
soil. They stalk about rapidly and run with ease, being shy, wary, and
far-sighted, while they are more easy to approach when they resort to
water. The quill-feathers are said to be lost after breeding.[177] In
spring the pugnacious cocks strut around the hens, swelling out their
plumage, and inflating the gular pouch when it is present; the head
meanwhile is thrown backwards, the wings droop, the tail is usually erected
and outspread, and booming or crooning utterances with leaps diversify the
performance. At times the notes are described as scolding, drumming,
craking, and clucking, or resemble "cok-cok" or "prut-prut." The diet
consists chiefly of juicy plants, such as young corn and turnips, clover
and plantains, but it includes berries and seeds, insects and their larvae,
molluscs, myriapods, frogs, or even small reptiles and mammals. The
Gom-Paauw[178] (_Eupodotis kori_) is so-called from its love of mimosa gum.
The eggs, varying from two to four or five in different species, are
deposited in an excavation in the soil–sometimes lined with grass–under
shelter of a bush, tussock, or growing crop; they are oily-green, olive,
drab, red-brown, or exceptionally bluish-green, and are generally blotched,
clouded, or zoned with purplish or dull red. The hen sits very closely.
Bustards can be circumvented by riding round them in constantly diminishing
circles, and they are also captured with Falcons.[179]
A fossil _Otis_ is recorded from the Miocene of France and Germany.
Fam. VII. RHINOCHETIDAE.–This contains only one species, _Rhinochetus
jubatus_, the Kagu of New Caledonia, a very old and generalized form,
somewhat bigger than an ordinary fowl, which was originally referred to the
Herons and then to the Cranes, but is undoubtedly nearly allied to the
latter, and approximates rather closely to _Eurypyga_.[180]
{264}[Illustration: FIG. 55.–Kagu. _Rhinochetus jubatus._ × ⅕.]
The head and eyes are large; the neck is strong; the bill is Heron-like,
but somewhat flat above, with a wide nasal groove. The sternum is weak and
narrow, having no posterior notch; the furcula is U-shaped; the legs are
moderately long and slender, the toes Rail-like, with curved claws; the
tibia is half bare, the metatarsus scutellated, with smaller scales behind.
The wings are moderate, broad, and rounded, though less developed than in
_Eurypyga_, the primaries being ten in number, and the secondaries–of which
the inner exceed the primaries–thirteen; the tail is fairly long and ample,
with twelve rectrices. The aftershaft is large; the nostrils are
impervious, contrary to the rule in the Order, being severally overhung by
a peculiar rolled-up membrane, said to protect them when the beak is thrust
into the soil; the tongue is lanceolate. Powder-down patches are profusely
distributed over the whole body, except towards the remiges and rectrices.
The plumage is slaty-grey, with indistinct dark bars on the wings and tail;
but when the former are expanded, rufous and white bands appear, varied by
black markings; while a long, erectile whitish-grey crest adorns the
occiput and nape. The bill and feet are orange-red. In adults down covers
the whole surface. Possibly the chicks remain a {265}considerable time in
the nest, but this is by no means certain; those of _Eurypyga_ do so, it is
true, but those of Cranes and Rails do not. Immature specimens are more
rufous, with black bars above.
Though formerly the Kagu was not rare in its native island, it is now
restricted to the wilder portions, where it is to be met with among the
rocks of craggy ravines or near stagnant waters, sleeping throughout the
day and issuing from its concealment towards evening. It walks quickly, yet
in a stately manner, often coming to a standstill or crouching, and
remaining motionless for a long period; but it can also run rapidly with
the head and neck outstretched, and the body carried after the manner of a
Rail. The habits in confinement, however, make it somewhat doubtful whether
the bird is as nocturnal as is asserted, for in the daytime it is quick and
lively in its motions, chasing its fellow-captives, dancing round with the
tip of its outspread wing or tail held fast in its bill, tossing about dry
leaves or pieces of paper, spreading out its wings and thrusting its beak
into the ground, kicking with its legs, and finally tumbling about as if in
a fit. The note is guttural and rattling, or almost a scream; the food
consists of molluscs, worms, and insects, sought for among the grass or in
crannies, while the bill is often plunged into the soil, and worms pulled
out, shaken and swallowed. When in quest of food the bird often paws the
earth with gentle strokes, and snails are usually beaten upon the ground to
break the shell. It will bathe in captivity, and is said to like wet
weather in its native haunts. The nest is unknown, but eggs laid at the
Zoological Society's Gardens in London are reddish-buff with brown and grey
markings, and recall those of the Woodcock or Corncrake.[181]
Fam. VIII. EURYPYGIDAE.–Two species of _Eurypyga_ are comprehended herein,
namely, _E. helias_ of the countries from Venezuela to Bolivia and Central
Brazil, and _E. major_ of Central America, Colombia, and Ecuador. These
are, like the Kagu, very ancient types, but whereas that bird shows some
affinity to _Scopus_, these trend rather towards _Nycticorax_, both being,
however, essentially Gruiform. The neck is long and thin, the bill rather
slender, with grooves on the maxilla and mandible: the whole leg and foot
are as in _Rhinochetus_, but shorter, weaker, and reticulated behind; the
wings and tail are even more ample, while the number of primaries and
rectrices are the same, but the secondaries are only {266}eleven, and the
inner feathers comparatively short. The nostrils are pervious, the tongue
is lanceolate, the furcula is U-shaped, the after-shaft is diminutive, and
the powder-down patches are abundant, though writers differ as to their
extent. _E. helias_–as Prof. Newton says in his excellent account[182]–is
not to be described in a limited space otherwise than generally; it has a
black head, with a white stripe above and under each eye, and a white
throat: the remaining plumage "being variegated with black, brown,
chestnut, bay, buff, grey, and white–so mottled, speckled, and belted
either in wave-like or zigzag forms, as somewhat to resemble certain moths.
The bay colour forms two conspicuous patches on each wing, and also an
antepenultimate bar on the tail, behind which is a subterminal band of
black. The irides are red; the bill is greenish-olive; and the legs are
pale yellow." _E. major_ is larger and more uniform in colour. Both adults
and nestlings have copious down, that of the latter being lightish brown
with lines and spots of darker brown and white. The sexes are similar.
[Illustration: FIG. 56.–Sun-Bittern. _Eurypyga helias._ × ¼.]
The "Sun-Bittern," to use its common but misleading name, is found on the
larger rivers, where the banks are wooded and swampy; it is shy but easily
tamed, and, according to Bates, is kept in captivity by the Brazilians. It
walks quietly and circumspectly with horizontal body and outstretched head,
and probably flies but little. Like the Kagu, it executes a fantastic
dance, but in this case the wings and tail form a semicircle which nearly
conceals the body. The note is a soft or plaintive long-drawn {267}whistle,
the food consists mainly of small fish and insects, which the bird spears
by darting out its head quickly. The nest, said to be made of sticks,
grass, and mud, with a lining of the latter, is placed on low branches, and
contains several eggs similar to those of the Kagu, but smaller. Both
parents incubate and attend to the young, which have several times been
reared in the Zoological Society's Gardens in London.[183]
Fam. IX. HELIORNITHIDAE.–The Finfoots, comprising three genera and four
species, now generally coupled with the Rallidae, have been placed near the
Divers and Grebes by several authors. The head is small, the neck thin, the
bill Rail-like and fairly stout; the metatarsus, which is scutellated
anteriorly and reticulated posteriorly, is short, twisted outwards, and
deeply grooved; while the toes have short, sharp claws, and broad scalloped
webs, extending in _Heliornis_ to most of their length. The long pointed
wings have twenty-one remiges, of which eleven are primaries, and are armed
with a curved spine; the tail consists in _Podica_ of eighteen elongated,
stiff, ribbed rectrices, which are narrow and pointed, and in _Heliopaïs_
and _Heliornis_ of rather soft, short, rounded feathers. The plumage is
close, but not glossy as in Grebes; there is no after-shaft, the U-shaped
furcula ancyloses with the sternum, the tongue is lanceolate, and the
nostrils are pervious.
These birds, which frequent the swamps or rocky streams of inland woods,
are very shy; their flight is heavy, and they rise with difficulty from the
surface of the water, aiding themselves by their feet. They swim and dive
well, and will remain half-submerged for hours, or will sit upon a low
branch over a stream, dropping down and scrambling up the bank when
disturbed, or hiding at its base. They are said, moreover, to run swiftly
on land. The note of _Heliornis fulica_ is like a dog's bark; the food is
in all cases of small fish, crustaceans, insects, and seeds. The nest and
eggs are unknown, but in the species just mentioned the nestlings are
stated to be naked. This form, about thirteen inches long, which ranges
from Guatemala to Paraguay, is olive-brown above, the black head and nape
being separated by a white band down each side of the neck from a blackish
line which encloses the white throat; the chest is buff, the sides are
brown, the remaining underparts whitish; the bill is red, the feet are
yellow, banded with black. _Podica senegalensis_ of West Africa, and the
doubtfully distinct {268}_P. petersi_, reaching from the Lower Congo to
South East Africa, are larger forms, with round ochreous spots above, and
red feet. _Heliopaïs personata_, extending from Assam to Sumatra, has a
black throat, orange bill, and light green feet.
ORDER XI. CHARADRIIFORMES.
The Charadriiformes are here taken to consist of five Sub-Orders. Of these
the LIMICOLAE contains the Families _Charadriidae_ (Plovers, Sandpipers,
Snipes, and so forth), _Chionididae_ (Sheath-bills), _Glareolidae_
(Pratincoles, Coursers, and Crab-Plover), _Thinocorythidae_ (Seed-Snipes),
_Oedicnemidae_ (Stone-Curlews), and _Parridae_ (Jaçanas); the LARI
possesses one Family, _Laridae_ (Gulls, Terns, and Skuas); the ALCAE only
the _Alcidae_ (Auks); the PTEROCLES, the _Pteroclidae_ (Sand-Grouse); but
the COLUMBAE may be divided into _Dididae_, _Didunculidae_, and
_Columbidae_. The first three may again be combined into a Laro-Limicoline
group, and the last two into a Pteroclo-Columbine, in accordance with their
affinities.
In structure the LIMICOLAE are sufficiently uniform to be considered
simultaneously.
The bill furnishes a useful means of subdividing the _Charadriidae_. It is
hardest in _Haematopus_, _Ibidorhynchus_, _Strepsilas_, and so forth, being
in them bony throughout. In _Charadrius_, _Aegialitis_, _Lobivanellus_,
_Vanellus_, and the like, it has a hard tip, but is comparatively flexible
towards the base. These may compose Sub-family (1) _Charadriinae_. In
_Totanus_, and its nearest allies, it is still hard at the tip, but more
flexible at the base. In _Tringa_, and similar genera, it ceases to be hard
at the tip, and is slightly endowed with nerves. These may constitute
Subfamily (2) _Tringinae_. In _Scolopax_, _Gallinago_, and _Rhynchaea_ it
becomes highly nervous at the tip, and therein differs from that of all
other birds. These form Sub-family (3) _Scolopacinae_. In _Himantopus_ and
_Recurvirostra_ the bill is so attenuated as hardly to be called hard at
the tip, but it has no nerves there. The form of the beak varies greatly,
being asymmetrical and twisted to the right in _Anarhynchus_, up-curved
from the middle in _Avocetta_, wedge-like in _Haematopus_, much flattened
in _Tringa platyrhyncha_, spade-shaped in _Eurynorhynchus_, arched in
_Numenius_, and strongly decurved in _Ibidorhynchus_. In the Chionididae a
horny sheath covers the base of the maxilla, and is indicated by faint
lines in the young; in _Glareola_ the bill is short, curved, and very
{269}deeply split, making a wide gape; in _Dromas_ it is hard, deep, and
compressed; in _Cursorius_ thick and little bent; in the Thinocorythidae
Fowl-like; in the Oedicnemidae short, stout, and blunt; in the Parridae
narrow and pointed, with a skinny frontal plate, and occasionally with
rictal wattles. The nasal grooves are very long in _Ibidorhynchus_,
_Totanus_, _Scolopax_ and elsewhere.
The tibia is often partly bare, and the metatarsus is extremely variable;
the legs are longer in _Himantopus_ than in any other bird of its size, and
long also in _Recurvirostra_, _Cursorius_, _Dromas_, the Parridae, and so
forth, while _Haematopus_, _Aegialitis_, _Scolopax_, _Glareola_, _Chionis_,
_Tringa_, and the Thinocorythidae are instances of the contrary. Both the
front and back of these members are scutellated in most Scolopacinae and
Tringinae, but the Charadriinae differ considerably in this respect; in
_Glareola_ the fore-part only is transversely scutellated, in _Cursorius_,
_Dromas_, the Thinocorythidae and Parridae the whole of the surface, while
in the Chionididae and Oedicnemidae both aspects are reticulated. The
anterior toes are ordinarily free, or have the third and fourth digits
slightly connected; but _Dromas_ and _Recurvirostra_ have them partly
webbed, as to some extent have _Himantopus_, _Totanus semipalmatus_, and a
few other forms, while in _Phalaropus_ the metatarsus is much compressed,
and the toes have lobed margins. The hallux, normally set rather high, is
frequently aborted, as in _Charadrius_, _Ibidorhynchus_, _Calidris_,
_Cursorius_ and _Oedicnemus_; in the Thinocorythidae and _Glareola_ it is
very small, in _Dromas_ larger; in the Parridae all four digits are on a
level and abnormally long, as are the claws, so that the birds walk easily
on floating vegetation. The nail of the mid-toe is pectinated in the
Glareolidae, recalling that of the Caprimulginae (Night-jars). The digits
are often somewhat fleshy, _Oedicnemus_ moreover, has an enlarged
tibio-tarsal joint.
The wings are usually long, having a bilobed appearance owing to the
equality of the inner secondaries and outer primaries; _Himantopus_,
_Dromas_, _Glareola_, and the Thinocorythidae have them much elongated,
_Phegornis_ and some other forms very short, while in _Vanellus_ the
expanse is most noticeable. In this genus, _Lobivanellus_, _Hoplopterus_,
the Chionididae, and the Parridae, is found a carpal spur, often large and
sharp; _Metopidius_, and, apparently, _Hydralector_ have the radius dilated
into a sub-triangular lamina[184]; {270}_Hydrophasianus_ has peculiar
filamentous appendages to the first and fourth primaries; _Scolopax minor_
has the three exterior of the normal eleven primaries particularly
attenuated. The secondaries in the Limicolae vary from ten to twenty.
The rectrices are usually twelve; though _Rhynchaea_ and the Parridae have
ten, while _Scolopax stenura_ and _S. megala_ possess twenty and twenty-six
respectively, the outer of which are exceedingly stiff and narrow–not to
give further instances. The tail in _Glareola_ is deeply furcate and
Swallow-like, in _Hydrophasianus_ it has the four median plumes very long
and decurved in the breeding season; but it is often quite short, as in
_Scolopax_. The form may be slightly forked, as in _Chionis_; somewhat
graduated or cuneate, as in the Thinocorythidae, _Totanus hypoleucus_, and
_Oedicnemus_; rounded, as in _Cursorius_; or almost even, as in _Vanellus_.
The tongue is rather long and pointed, being, however, rudimentary in
_Numenius_; the nostrils are pervious, except in the Thinocorythidae,
Glareolidae, and perhaps _Dromas_, and have at times a leathery operculum
in Plovers; the syrinx is tracheo-bronchial, the furcula U-shaped; _Parra_
has a decidedly muscular gizzard, and the Thinocorythidae possess a
globular crop. The convoluted trachea of _Rhynchaea_, the papillae on the
orbits of _Chionis_, the caruncles on the face of _Machetes_, and the loral
wattles of _Lobivanellus_ are fully described below. The aftershaft is very
small in the Parridae, rather large elsewhere. In adults the down is
sparing; in the young it is short, thick, and commonly of a yellowish hue,
with brown longitudinal stripes; though it may be grey, as in _Chionis_ and
_Haematopus_; mottled with reddish and white, as in Snipes; or with black,
orange, yellow, and white, as in Phalaropes.
The plumage is usually plain brown or grey, with an admixture of white, or
less commonly chestnut; _Vanellus_, _Lobivanellus_, and _Cursorius
chalcopterus_, however, exhibit metallic hues, and _Chionis_ is white. Red
or yellow beaks or feet adorn many forms. Crests occur in certain species
of _Vanellus_, _Hoplopterus_, and _Lobivanellus_; the male of _Machetes_
(Ruff) is most remarkable for its lateral head-tufts and fine neck-frill,
developed for the breeding season; _Numenius tahitiensis_ has peculiar
bristly-pointed flank-feathers. In _Scolopax_ the large eyes are set
unusually far back in the skull. The sexes are generally similar, but in
_Eudromias_,[185] _Phalaropus_, and _Rhynchaea_ the female is brighter than
{271}the male, as well as larger, the latter fact holding true of a
considerable number of the Tringinae and Scolopacinae, and of the Parridae,
though a special study of the subject is still needful. In several species
the breeding plumage differs remarkably from that of winter.
The _Limicolae_ often flock together in the cold season, but are by no
means uniform in their habits, and divergencies will be noticed under the
various genera. They run well, often bobbing the head up and down, and fly
strongly, wheeling round sharply in the air; while some Snipes rise in
zigzag fashion. Typically waders, many, if not all of them, can swim on
emergency, but few habitually do so, like Phalaropes. Exceptionally they
perch on trees, or soar. Swamps, river-sides, and in winter the sea-coast,
are the general haunts; but Coursers, Stone-Curlews and "Seed-Snipes"
frequent arid or stony localities, _Dromas_ sandy islets or shores,
_Chionis_ maritime rocks. _Vanellus cayennensis_ and _Parra jacana_ are
said to indulge in dances, while Lapwings and other species feign to be
wounded if their young are in danger. The food consists of crustaceans,
molluscs, worms, and insects; rarely of small fish or eggs of other birds;
but not uncommonly of vegetable matter, on which the Thinocorythidae
entirely subsist. The usual note is shrill, but the "scape, scape" of the
Snipe, the melancholy whistle of the Curlew, the yelp of the Godwit, the
reiterated scream of the Oyster-catcher, and the sweet song or trill of
Temminck's Stint and of the Green Sandpiper should be noticed among the
exceptions. Usually four pyriform eggs, varying from brownish or
olive-green to stone-colour, with double markings of lighter and darker
shades, are arranged in a hole scraped in the ground, with or without
lining, the small ends pointing to the centre. Those of Oyster-catchers and
Stone-Curlews are more oval, while the Dotterel and some other species lay
only three, and Stone-Curlews two. The Parridae amass a considerable pile
of water-plants, _Chionis_ usually breeds in holes among rocks, the Green
and the Wood-Sandpiper often use deserted nests of other birds. The young
run almost from the shell, the Stone-Curlews and _Dromas_, which lays a
white egg in sandy burrows, being to some extent exceptions. The male
performs most of the duties of incubation in _Rhynchaea_, _Phalaropus_, and
apparently the Dotterel, Bar-tailed Godwit, and Purple Sandpiper–if not
elsewhere; while the Ruff is well known to be polygamous. Stone-Curlews and
{272}Woodcocks are certainly somewhat crepuscular, and the drumming of the
Snipe (p. 291) must be mentioned in passing. Nearly all Limicoline birds
are migrants, and may frequently be heard overhead at night, when on
passage. The flesh is generally excellent.
Fam. I. CHARADRIIDAE.–Sub-fam. 1. _Charadriinae._–The Dotterel (_Eudromias
morinellus_), breeds on the fells and tundras of Northern Europe and Asia,
as well as on the mountains of Scotland, Transylvania, Styria, and
Bohemia–if not still in the English Lake District; in winter it migrates to
Palestine and North Africa. The colour is ashy-brown, with black crown and
nape, towards the latter of which the white superciliary streaks run down;
the throat is whitish, the fore-neck brown, divided by a white gorget from
the orange-chestnut lower breast; the abdomen is black, the lateral
rectrices are tipped with white. The young are more rufous above, and grey
and white below. Three olive eggs with brown blotches are laid in a
depression of the mossy ground, the parents being tamer than most Plovers
at the nest. _E. veredus_ inhabits Mongolia, wintering in the Sunda
Islands, the Moluccas, and Australia; _E. australis_ is confined to the
last country; _E._ (_Zonibyx_) _modestus_, the only four-toed species of
the genus, ranges from Tarapacá and Buenos Aires to Tierra del Fuego and
the Falkland Islands. _Charadrius pluvialis_, the Golden Plover, breeds on
the higher British moorlands, and reaches from Northern Europe to the Lena
in Asia, overlapping about the Yenisei _C. fulvus_, with grey instead of
white axillaries, which extends to Bering Sea and–as the stouter,
shorter-toed race _C. dominicus_–to Greenland. Both the latter have
occurred in England. The plumage is black, densely spotted with yellow
above, the forehead and superciliary streaks are white, as are the sides of
the body. In winter the under parts are nearly white. At that season the
various species migrate southwards as far as Cape Colony, India, Australia,
New Zealand, Polynesia, and Chili. The loud clear whistle of the Golden
Plover is a characteristic sound in summer on our sub-alpine hills, where
the bird deposits four rich olive-brown eggs in a hollow in the herbage; it
is very wary at the nest. The Grey Plover, _Squatarola helvetica_, with a
distinct hind toe and black axillaries, is browner than the foregoing
three-toed species in summer, and greyer in winter; it visits us from
autumn to spring, but breeds in the far north of Eastern Europe, Asia, and
America, reaching Cape Colony, Ceylon, and Tasmania on migration.
_Erythrogonys cinctus_ of Australia, and {273}the long-billed _Oreophilus
ruficollis_ of South America from Peru and Argentina to Patagonia and the
Falklands, are nearly allied forms; while the rufous New Zealand
_Charadrius_ (?) _obscurus_ apparently somewhat resembles the Dotterel in
its habits and eggs.
[Illustration: FIG. 57.–Ringed Plover. _Aegialitis hiaticola._ × ⅖.]
_Aegialitis hiaticola_, the Ringed Plover, Sand-Lark, or Stone-runner,
mistakenly called the "Ring Dotterel," which is common on the British
coasts and even inland, extends from Smith's Sound eastwards to Bering
Strait, and migrates to South Africa, North India, or accidentally,
Australia. It breeds as far south as the Atlantic Islands, North Africa,
and Turkestan. The plumage is light brown, with white forehead, post-ocular
streak, upper neck, alar bar, outer rectrices, and under surface; the
crown, lores, cheeks, and a collar–broader in front–being black. The young
lack the black crown. The habits and "peeping" cry hardly require
description. When nesting on the warrens of the Eastern Counties it is
called the Stone-hatch, because it there lays its black-spotted drab eggs
in a hole paved with small stones. _Ae. curonica_, the Little Ringed
Plover, which strays to Britain, the Färoes, and Iceland, breeds on inland
waters from Scandinavia to Japan; reaching southwards to North Africa,
Turkestan, and China, and on migration to the Gaboon, Mozambique, Ceylon,
and New Guinea. It is distinguished from the last species by the shafts of
all the primaries, except the outer one, being dusky. _Ae. cantiana_, the
Kentish Plover, which still nests in Kent and Sussex, occupies
Europe–though very locally–North Africa, and Central Asia to China and
Japan; it comparatively seldom breeds inland, and is found in winter as far
as South Africa, India, and Australia. The collar is incomplete in front,
the female has no black crown, while the black legs distinguish it from
{274}the Ringed Plover. _Ae. semipalmata_, with a distinct web between the
outer and middle toes, replaces the latter in North America, ranging in
winter to Peru and Brazil; whereas _Ae. placida_ represents it in China,
Japan, and India. The place of the Kentish Plover is taken in western North
America by _Ae. nivosa_–with white lores instead of black–which migrates to
Chili. _Ae. vocifera_, termed "Kill-deer" from its cry, inhabits North
America, and extends in winter to northern South America, while it has been
shot even in the Scilly Islands; the lores are brown, and the fore-neck
exhibits two black bands. It nests in the interior on grass or ploughed
fields. In _Ae. monachus_ of Southern Australia, the breeding male has a
perfectly black head; in _Ae. asiatica_ of Central Asia, which has wandered
to Britain, the head is brown, and the breast shews a black-edged chestnut
band, somewhat similar to that in _Ae. bicincta_ of the Australian Region,
and other species; _Ae. bifrontata_ of Madagascar has grey lores, and two
black bands on the breast. Space fails to mention all the species of this
large three-toed genus; but _Ae._ (_Thinornis_) _novae zealandiae_ of the
New Zealand area, _Ae. falklandica_ of America from Chili and Argentina
southwards, and _Ae. sanctae helenae_, the "Wire-bird" peculiar to St.
Helena, should be noticed.
[Illustration: FIG. 58.–Wry-bill. _Anarhynchus frontalis._ × ⅖.]
_Anarhynchus frontalis_, the Wry-bill of New Zealand, is grey, with a black
gorget and whitish lower parts; the habits are as in _Aegialitis_, but the
laterally-twisted bill enables the bird to pick up insects from around
stones with the greatest ease.
Thirteen species may perhaps be included in _Lobivanellus_ (Wattled
Lapwing); but here, as in the next genus, _Vanellus_, there are many
diversities of opinion. The two groups are fairly similar in habits, nests,
and eggs. Some have a hallux, some not. _L. pectoralis_ of Australia and
Tasmania, _L. indicus_, ranging from Arabia and Mesopotamia to Cochin
China, _L. cinereus_ of China and Japan, which migrates as far as Bengal,
_L. {275}melanocephalus_ of North-East Africa, _L. superciliosus_,
extending from West Africa to Lake Tanganyika, and the crested _L._
(_Sarciophorus_) _tectus_, found from Senegal to East Equatorial Africa and
Arabia, have small loral wattles; _L._ (_Lobipluvia_) _malabaricus_ of
India, Ceylon, and Burma, _L. miles_, reaching from Timor Laut to New
Guinea and Australia, _L. cucullatus_ of Sumatra, Java, and Timor, _L.
lobatus_ of Australia, accidental in New Zealand, _L. lateralis_ of the
southern, and _L. senegalensis_ of the northern Ethiopian Region, with _L.
albiceps_ of West Africa and the Upper Congo, have large wattles, and,
except the first, a wing-spur. _L. lobatus_ is olive-brown above, with
black crown, nape, and wings; the cheeks, tail-coverts, and lower parts are
white; the tail is white with black tip; the bill, wattles, and spurs are
yellow, the feet purplish-red.
_Vanellus_ comprises the true Lapwings; it is a closely allied genus to the
last, and varies as to the possession of a hind-toe. _V. cristatus_, the
English Peewit or Green Plover, has the upper parts and motile crest
bottle-green, with a purple and copper gloss; the throat and upper breast
black; the cheeks, sides of the neck, base of tail, and under surface
white; the upper and lower tail-coverts bay. The slow flapping flight and
shrill cry are as familiar to us as are the cock's aerial evolutions, and
the habit of tumbling on the ground with an apparently broken wing to decoy
intruders from the brood. This species frequents alike cultivated ground,
marshes, and wastes, depositing its four olive eggs with black markings in
a scraping in the soil lined with a little dry herbage; towards autumn it
feeds in large flocks upon the shore, being semi-crepuscular, as might be
expected from the large eyes. Breeding in most of Europe, Northern Asia,
and even North Africa, it strays to Greenland and Jan Mayen, occurs
plentifully in Japan, and at times in Alaska, and migrates as far south as
Barbados, North India, and China. The somewhat similar Téru-téru (_V.
cayennensis_),[186] with long crest and large blunt yellow spur, occupies
the east, and the larger _V. chilensis_ the west and south of South
America; _V. resplendens_ inhabits the Andes of North Chili, Peru, and
Ecuador; _V. coronatus_ South and East Africa; _V. melanopterus_, the
latter and Arabia; _V. inornatus_ West and South-East Africa. The long
legged _Chettusia gregaria_, which, like the next genus, possesses a
hallux, has occurred in Britain and South-West Europe, but breeds from
South-East Europe to Lake Saisan, and migrates to North-East {276}Africa,
India, and Ceylon. _C. leucura_, of similar range, winters in North-East
Africa and North India. _Defilippia crassirostris_ of North-East, and _D.
leucoptera_ of South-East Africa, with very long toes and much white on the
wing, are nearly akin to the above. _Hoplopterus spinosus_, the three-toed
Spur-winged Lapwing of Egypt and the northern Ethiopian Region, which
wanders to South-East Europe and Persia, is a crested black and white
species with a brownish back. The Arabs call it "Zic-zac" from its cry,
while it attacks birds on the wing with its spur. _H. speciosus_ occupies
South Africa, _H. cayanus_ most of South America, _H. ventralis_ ranges
from North and Central India to Hainan.
_Strepsilas interpres_, the Turnstone, has the head, rump, tail, and
remiges black and white, the upper parts varied with chestnut and black,
the breast black, the belly white, and the feet orange, with the hind toe
turned inwards. In winter the coloration is chiefly grey and white. From
its extensive migrations, it is possibly the most cosmopolitan of Birds,
while it breeds in Northern Europe, Asia, and America, and as near us as
Denmark, though not proved to do so in Britain. In autumn and spring this
lively little species frequents our muddy shores or seaweed-covered rocks,
often turning over the pebbles in search of food; the note is a twitter or
whistle; the nest a slightly-lined excavation under shelter of some
maritime shrub or stone, containing four grey-green eggs, marked with
olive-brown. _S. melanocephalus_, of the Pacific coast of North America,
lacks chestnut tints. _Aphriza virgata_, the Surf-bird, a brownish species
with white alar bar, rump, and abdomen, found from Alaska to Chili, may
perhaps be placed here. The position of the scarce Patagonian _Pluvianellus
sociabilis_, which is chiefly grey above and white below, is equally
doubtful. Both species lack the hallux. _Haematopus ostralegus_, the
Oyster-catcher, inhabits Europe and Central Asia, extending–as the form _H.
osculans_–to China and Japan; in winter it reaches Senegambia, Mozambique,
Ceylon, and South China. From the black head, neck, and mantle, white lower
back, underparts, wing-bar, and base of tail, it is called the Sea-Pie;
while a habit of opening mussels with the long wedge-shaped bill gives it
the name of Mussel-picker. Oyster-catcher seems a misnomer, but worms,
crustaceans, and so forth vary the diet. It frequents shores and inland
rivers, depositing three, or rarely four, oval drab eggs, with blackish and
grey markings, on sand, shingle, or rocks. {277}The scream in the breeding
season is often quite deafening, but at other times these wary birds are
seldom noisy. Their flight is powerful, and they can swim and dive. The
bill is orange and the feet flesh-coloured in this species, as well as in
_H. longirostris_ of the Moluccas, Papuasia, Australia, and New Zealand,
with longer bill and entirely black primaries. _H. leucopus_ of Chili,
Patagonia, and the Falklands, has a black lower back and pale feet; _H.
palliatus_ (with its races _frazari_, _galapagensis_, and _durnfordi_),
ranging from Nova Scotia and California to Patagonia, has a brown mantle.
Of the perfectly black or brownish-black species, _H. niger_, of both
coasts of the North Pacific, has pale flesh-coloured feet; _H. moquini_, of
the Ethiopian Region, the Canaries, and Madeira, has them deep red; _H.
ater_, found from Peru to Patagonia and the Falklands, has the scarlet bill
compressed and upturned; _H. unicolor_ of Australia and New Zealand has the
feet brick-red. This genus has three toes, as has the remarkable
_Ibidorhynchus struthersi_, with long decurved red bill and greenish-grey
feet, found from Turkestan to China, and in the Himalayas. The front of the
head is black, margined laterally with white; the upper parts and neck are
grey, with white on the wings and outer rectrices, and black undulations on
the tail, which has the tip and coverts mostly black; the under parts are
white with a black gorget. The bill is black in the young. The note is
whistling, the habits are like those of an Oyster-catcher, while islands in
stony or sandy rivers furnish breeding sites.[187]
_Himantopus_ contains the extraordinarily long-legged Stilts, of which _H.
candidus_ visits Britain and Northern Europe, but breeds only in the
southern parts, including Hungary. It also nests in India and Ceylon, and
in Africa–though chiefly in the north. In the cold season it reaches Timor,
New Zealand, and elsewhere. The head, long neck, lower back, and under
surface are white, the remaining parts greenish-black; the iris is carmine,
the legs are pink. Females are browner above, while immature males have the
crown and nape black or brownish. The note is clear and reiterated, the
habits are Plover-like, but the nest, placed on mud or in grass-tufts, is
more substantial than in those birds, and contains four olive eggs with
black scrawls or blotches. Whether searching the shallows for insects or
other food, hovering overhead with dangling feet, or flying with them
outstretched, the appearance is equally remarkable. _H. mexicanus_ of
temperate {278}North America, migrating to Peru and Brazil, has a black
occiput and nape; _H. knudseni_ of the Sandwich Islands has the sides of
the neck also black; _H. brasiliensis_ of southern South America has the
nape only black, with a white collar below; _H. leucocephalus_ of Australia
and New Zealand, which visits the Malay Islands, the Philippines, the
Moluccas and Papuasia, is similar, but the black does not reach the eye;
_H. melas_ of New Zealand is uniform black. _H._ (_Cladorhynchus_)
_pectoralis_ of Southern Australia has webbed feet like the four-toed
Avocets, though itself three-toed like other Stilts, from which a bay
pectoral band distinguishes it. Of the Avocets with their curious up-curved
beak, _Recurvirostra andina_, of the Chilian Andes, alone resembles the
Stilts in possessing a black mantle. _R. avocetta_, which bred in England
until at least 1824, now ranges from Denmark and Holland to Mongolia and
South Africa, though decidedly local; in Asia it migrates southwards to
Ceylon and Hainan. The plumage is white, with the crown, nape, inner
scapulars, and part of the wings black, the legs light blue. It is called
Cobbler's Awl, from its long, flexible bill, or Yelper, from its loud clear
cry. Its general habits and slight nest recall those of Plovers, though the
eggs are larger; while it seeks for aquatic creatures, in shallows or pools
left by the tide, with a curious scooping sidelong action of the beak. _R.
americana_, with a pale rufous head and neck, inhabits temperate America,
extending in winter to the West Indies and Guatemala: _A. rubricollis_
(_novae hollandiae_), with those portions chestnut, ranges from Australia,
where it breeds, to New Zealand.
Sub-fam. 2.–The _Tringinae_ of the present work–four-toed unless otherwise
stated–are often separated into the groups _Phalaropodinae_, _Totaninae_,
and _Tringinae_ proper; the first being remarkable for the Coot-like digits
with lobed webs. _Phalaropus fulicarius_, the Grey Phalarope, which visits
us in winter, and has even reached Chili and New Zealand, breeds in
Spitsbergen, Iceland, Greenland, Arctic America, and Asia. It is blackish
and chestnut above and rufous below, with a little white on the face,
wings, and tail; but the plumage differs remarkably in winter, the upper
parts becoming grey with a black nuchal patch, and the lower white. As in
all the genus, the female is said to court the male, which is duller, and
performs most of the duties of incubation. The eggs are larger and rounder
than in the next species, the nest less concealed. _P._ (_Lobipes_)
_hyperboreus_, the Red-necked Phalarope, {279}with more tapering bill,
breeds in Scandinavia, Russia, and Siberia, as well as from Alaska to
Greenland, Iceland, Shetland, Orkney, and the Hebrides; it rarely migrates
to Western Europe, but reaches India, New Guinea, Guatemala, and Peru. It
has dark grey and rufous upper parts, a white alar bar, throat, and belly,
a grey breast, and chestnut sides of the neck nearly meeting in front. By
winter the red tints have vanished and the white has increased. This
attractive little bird is often so tame that it will feed at the feet of an
intruder, or will even proceed to settle itself on its small and rather
deep nest, placed in some tuft of herbage; the four eggs are greenish-olive
with black markings. When disturbed from them it flies around with a shrill
reiterated "tweet." It breeds in swamps or by hill-lakes, and can swim
well, but is not found so far out to sea as the Grey Phalarope. _P._
(_Steganopus_) _wilsoni_, of temperate North America, migrating as far as
Patagonia and the Falklands, is a larger, longer-billed bird, with a white
nape and a black stripe down each side of the head and neck.
_Tringa alpina_, the Dunlin or Oxbird, is familiar to most autumn visitors
to our flatter coasts. Breeding not uncommonly in Britain, though chiefly
in the north, it is found in the colder parts of both the Old and the New
World, while exceptionally its eggs have been obtained in Southern Spain;
in winter it extends to the Canaries, Zanzibar, India, China, California,
and the West Indies. When first they arrive on the shore the large flocks
are remarkably tame, and allow even gunners to walk among them, as they
forage with head bent down over the mud or sand, or rise with a cheeping
cry, only to alight again at close quarters. The slight nest, placed
amongst heather or short grass on some moory hill-pasture or seaside marsh,
contains four greenish-white eggs with brown or rufous spotting. The
plumage exhibits a mixture of rufous, grey, and black above, and is chiefly
white beneath, with a large, black, pectoral patch; the decurved bill and
the feet are black. Most of the rufous and all the black disappear in
winter. _T. minuta_, the Little Stint, a miniature Dunlin with no black on
the breast, and a short, straight bill, visits Britain regularly on
passage, and breeds from the coasts of Northern Norway and Russia to Arctic
Asia, a red-throated species or race (_T. ruficollis_) occurring east of
the Lena; in winter the birds reach South Africa, the Indian Region,
Australia, and Tasmania. _T. minutilla_, the darker American Stint, with
olive feet, which occupies the Arctic New {280}World, has been obtained in
England, and migrates at least as far as Ecuador and Brazil; the very
similar Eastern Asiatic _T. subminuta_ reaches Bering Island, and winters
southwards to the Indian Region and Australia. The habits and eggs of the
Little Stint resemble those of the Dunlin, but the latter are smaller; the
note, too, is more like the twitter of a swallow. _T. temmincki_ is
greyish-brown above and more buff below, with dark markings throughout,
white belly, alar bar and four outer rectrices. In winter the dusky
markings vanish, and the birds resemble miniature Common Sandpipers. They
frequently visit Britain, and breed in Northern Europe and Asia, chiefly
beyond the limits of forest growth; migrating southwards to Senegambia,
North-East Africa, India, the Malay countries, and China. Temminck's Stint
has a hovering, butterfly-like flight, and habitually perches on posts and
the like, uttering a continuous trilling note or song; the four buff or
greyish-green eggs with their brown spotting are deposited on a little
herbage among sedge or grass. _T. subarquata_, the Curlew-Sandpiper, is
grey, black, and rufous, with chestnut under surface and black bars on the
white rump, both these parts becoming white in winter; the bill is long and
decurved. As far as is yet known, the breeding-quarters lie in the far
north of Asia, eggs having recently (1897) been taken near the mouth of the
Yenesei: but the bird occurs in Arctic Europe in spring and autumn, and
visits our shores irregularly in company with other small waders in autumn,
wandering occasionally to Eastern America and Alaska, and migrating to Cape
Colony, India, and Tasmania. _T. fuscicollis_, Bonaparte's Sandpiper, with
white upper tail-coverts, but dusky rump and short bill, inhabits Arctic
America, reaching the whole of South America in winter, and even straying
to Britain. It has also occurred in Franz Josef Land in summer. It somewhat
resembles the Dunlin in appearance, and the Purple Sandpiper in habits. The
closely allied _T. bairdi_ of nearly all America, which breeds towards the
North, is distinguished by the median tail-coverts being brownish; it has
once been observed in South Africa. Another dark-rumped species is _T.
maculata_, the Pectoral Sandpiper, blackish-brown and rufous above, and
buff with dusky streaks beneath, the belly being white. It has occurred
several times in Britain, but inhabits the "Barren Grounds" from Alaska to
Hudson's Bay, and migrates as far as Patagonia. Four greenish-buff eggs
with brown blotches are deposited in dry grassy spots. {281}The male is
especially remarkable for his habit, apparently unique in the Family, of
inflating the oesophagus during his courting performances, until it hangs
down like a bag; meanwhile he takes short flights or rises with stiffened
wings in the air, uttering a muffled booming note.[188] The Old World form,
_T. acuminata_, extends from East Siberia to Alaska, migrating to the Malay
Archipelago, New Guinea, Australia, and New Zealand; it differs in its
white chin and distinctly streaked flanks. _T. maritima_ or _striata_, the
Purple Sandpiper, is brownish-grey above, with rufous spotting on the
blacker mantle, and some white on the wing; the throat and breast are
greyish with dusky streaks, the abdomen is white. In winter, when the upper
parts are purplish-black and the breast is unspotted, it occurs from
Scandinavia and temperate America to the Mediterranean and the Bermudas,
arriving in Britain later than its congeners, and frequenting spray-washed,
seaweed-covered rocks in search of small molluscs. It is usually tame, can
swim well, and utters a soft low note. The eggs, often of a very green
ground-colour, are deposited in mossy or grassy places on hill-tops, from
the Färoes northwards, though in the more Arctic regions of Europe and
Eastern America the bird breeds at the sea-level. It nests in Franz Josef
Land, but is rare in Asia. The Prybilof Island form has been called _T.
ptilocnemis_, the Alaskan _T. couesi_. _T. canutus_, the Knot, possibly,
but not probably, named after Canute, has in summer a reddish head and
neck, black, cinnamon, and white upper parts, chestnut under surface, and
white tail-coverts barred with black. The plumage varies greatly according
to age and season, but the winter adult is grey above and white with dusky
flecks below. While no absolutely identified eggs exist, this species
undoubtedly breeds on the North Georgian or Parry Islands, Melville
Peninsula, Grinnell Land, Smith's Sound, and Lady Franklin Bay, but
apparently not in Arctic Europe, though possibly in Asia. Large flocks
migrate to our shores, and some individuals reach Brazil, Damara-Land, the
Indian Region, Australia, and New Zealand; they are tame on arrival and
used to be netted for the table in England. In Arctic America _Saxifraga
oppositifolia_ and _Algae_ vary the diet of insects and molluscs, but other
Sandpipers are known to eat plants. {282}The East Siberian _T.
crassirostris_, with no chestnut beneath, migrates to Japan, the Indian
Region, and Australia.
_Ereunetes pusillus_, called the Semipalmated Sandpiper from its partly
webbed toes, resembles the western form of the Little Stint in coloration;
it breeds in the extreme north of America, and has reached Patagonia in
winter. _Eurynorhynchus pygmaeus_, the Spoon-billed Sandpiper, on the other
hand, is coloured like the eastern red-throated Little Stint, but is
especially remarkable for its large, broad, shovel-shaped bill. The
breeding grounds are not known, but it has been obtained on both sides of
the North Pacific, and on migration in Japan, China, India, and Burma.
_Calidris arenaria_, the Sanderling, easily recognisable by the want of a
hind-toe, is rufous and black above, and white below, having a chestnut
throat spotted with black. It reaches us in August, while some individuals
remain throughout the winter, being at that season uniform grey with white
under surface. The eggs, which have a peculiar greenish tint, and are like
those of the Curlew in miniature, have been taken in Greenland and Arctic
America, but, except perhaps in Iceland, never yet in Northern Europe or
Asia. Sanderlings are almost as cosmopolitan as Turnstones, and on
migration are commonly observed running at the edge of the surf, uttering a
weak, shrill cry. _Limicola platyrhyncha_, the Broad-billed Sandpiper, has
a wide flat beak with the pointed tip slightly decurved; the upper plumage
is mottled with dark brown, rufous, and white; the breast is reddish-white,
spotted with brown; the abdomen white. It occasionally visits Britain, and
breeds on the fells of Norway, the fens of Lapland, and thence eastwards to
Russia, but is rarely met with in Asia until the Sea of Okhotsk is reached;
in winter, when it becomes grey above and white below, it resorts to North
Africa, Madagascar, Ceylon, the Philippines, the Moluccas, and China. It
soars like a Snipe, utters a rapid, double note, and is somewhat skulking.
The parent sits very closely on the eggs, in which the greenish or buff
ground-colour is commonly nearly hidden by chocolate or rufous markings.
_Tryngites rufescens_, the Buff-breasted Sandpiper, which has wandered to
Britain and Heligoland, breeds in the extreme north of America, and just
reaches East Siberia; in winter it ranges to Peru and Argentina. Light
brown and black above, and reddish-buff with a few black spots below, the
distinctive black marblings beneath the quills are well seen as the bird,
according to its habit, runs along with one wing raised.
{283}Here may be mentioned _Aechmorhynchus cancellatus_ (_parvirostris_),
of Christmas and Paumotu Islands in the Pacific, which is rufous-brown with
white under surface mostly barred with brown; and _Prosobonia leucoptera_,
Latham's White-winged Sandpiper, from Tahiti and Eimeo, with brown head and
mantle, chestnut rump and lower parts, white wing-patch and superciliary
streak–species of doubtful affinity, which are both presumably extinct.
The large genus _Totanus_ is more inland in its haunts during the breeding
season than _Tringa_. _T. calidris_, the Redshank, is resident in Britain,
and ranges through Europe, the Mediterranean, and Asia south of lat. 60°
N., migrating to South Africa, the Indian Region, and Japan. The upper
parts are light brown with darker bars and streaks, the primaries being
black; the rump, secondaries, tail, and lower surface are white, but the
two latter are barred with blackish and flecked with brown respectively;
the feet are orange-red, or yellowish in the young. In winter the colour is
ashy-grey, with nearly white under parts. This bird breeds in salt marshes
or swamps, not uncommonly far inland, and deposits four buff eggs with
reddish or purplish-brown spots in grass or rush-tufts, making little or no
nest, but drawing the herbage together over the spot to conceal it. Both
parents usually rise a long way ahead of the intruder, and fly wildly
round, uttering their shrill whistling cry of "pitotoi." Redshanks are
especially wary on the coast in winter, and, like Curlews or Lapwings, are
the bane of the shooter; they can swim and dive, and not uncommonly perch
on trees; the food, procured on sandy spots or sea-weed-covered rocks,
consists of molluscs, crustaceans, worms, and aquatic insects. _T. fuscus_,
the Dusky or Spotted Redshank, a scarce visitor to our shores, breeds in
Europe and Asia, chiefly north of the Arctic Circle, and has a similar
winter range to its congener. It generally nests in forest-clearings some
way from water, and lays fine greenish eggs, blotched with varied browns.
The female sits very closely. Less noisy than its kindred, unless
accompanied by young, it flies comparatively strongly, perches on trees,
and recalls the Greenshank by its habits. The plumage is black, with white
spots above, white rump and barred tail; in winter it resembles that of the
Redshank, and the crimson legs become orange-red. _T. flavipes_, the
Yellowshank, which has wandered to England, inhabits the colder parts of
North America, and migrates as far as Patagonia; it is black, grey-brown,
and white above, and white with dusky {284}markings below, the legs being
bright yellow. _T. melanoleucus_, of the same districts, is similar, but
larger. _T. guttifer_ is a rare North Pacific species, recorded in winter
from Calcutta and Burma. It is not unlike _T. glottis_, the Greenshank,
which ranges over Northern Europe and Asia, and extends in winter to Cape
Colony, the Indian Region, and Australia. This bird has wandered to
America, and breeds in the hill-districts of Scotland, resembling the Dusky
Redshank in its selection of dry nesting sites, habit of perching, and so
forth. It is, however, much more noisy, uttering a strident note, or one
dimly recalling a Woodpecker, while it lays large, buffish-white eggs with
rich brown blotches. It sometimes eats small fish, as does its congener _T.
incanus_. The plumage is grey and black above in summer and grey in winter,
with white rump and tail, the latter being barred with dusky; the white
breast is spotted with brown in the breeding season; the slightly up-turned
beak is blackish; the legs are olive. _T. stagnatilis_, the Marsh
Sandpiper, a miniature Greenshank of somewhat similar winter range,
occupies South Europe and Central Asia. _T. glareola_, the Wood Sandpiper,
is olive-brown above, with small whitish spots and white rump; the white
cheeks, fore-neck, and breast are heavily streaked with brown; the
tail-feathers and axillaries are also white with black bars and brown
flecks respectively, the feet are olive. The nest has once at least been
found in Britain, whence the bird ranges over North Europe and Asia; it has
apparently bred in Spain and Italy, and migrates to Cape Colony, the Indian
Region, and Australia. In this species and the following the note is shrill
and often tremulous, while the former occasionally, and the latter
habitually, lays its greenish eggs with reddish-brown spots in deserted
nests of other birds near inland waters, instead of on the ground. _T.
ochropus_, the Green Sandpiper, which is less spotted above, has much wider
black tail-bars, and blackish axillaries with white chevrons. It has been
suspected of breeding in Britain, and occupies a similar though somewhat
more northern range than the last-named, but does not reach Australia. _T.
solitarius_, with almost uniform brown median rectrices, inhabits
temperate, and migrates to tropical, South America; it has been shot in the
littoral marshes of western England. _T._ (_Symphemia_) _semipalmatus_,
largest of the genus, the Willet of temperate North America, which extends
to Brazil in winter and wanders to Europe, is brownish-grey with black
mottlings, the outspread {285}wing shewing a white patch, and the white
under parts brownish streaks. In the cold season all the dark markings
vanish. _T._ (_Heteractitis_) _incanus_, having uniform grey upper, and
white under surface, closely barred in summer with dusky, is found through
the Eastern Pacific Islands, and on the mainland from Alaska to the
Galápagos. _T. brevipes_, with white-banded upper tail-coverts, occurs from
Kamtschatka and East Siberia to the Malay Islands and Australia. Both breed
to the northward.
_Machetes pugnax_, the Ruff–with its consort the Reeve–was formerly
well-known in England from the large numbers netted or snared for the
table. Our nesting birds are now reduced to a few pairs, but considerable
numbers visit us on passage, while they breed through northern Europe and
Asia, and migrate to South Africa, the Indian region, and Japan, wandering
rarely to Iceland and Eastern America. The Ruff's nuptial plumage, which
varies extraordinarily and individually, may be chiefly black, white,
chestnut, buff, grey and white, and so forth, often with metallic hues or
concentric barring. A tuft of stiff curled plumes springs from near each
ear, the feathers of the face are replaced by yellowish or pinkish
tubercles, and an ample distensible ruff overhangs the breast. Males regain
the same colours annually, but after breeding become like the females,
which are dark brown and buff, and one-third smaller. The polygamous
tendencies and habit of "hilling," _i.e._ sparring on some slight eminence
for the Reeves, have been frequently described;[189] the note, though
seldom heard, is said to resemble ka-ka-kuk; the food includes seeds,
insects, and worms; the nest, placed among herbage in the drier parts of a
swamp, contains four greenish, snipe-like eggs, with rich brown blotches.
The Ruff performs many antics while courting, but leaves all the work of
building, incubation, and the care of the young to his mate.
_Bartramia longicauda_, which accidentally visits Britain, Continental
Europe, and even Australia, inhabits North America, and migrates southward
to Chili and Argentina. It is light brown above, varied with black, buff,
and white, the long wedge-shaped tail and the under surface of the wing are
barred, the rufous lower parts spotted, with black. The throat and belly
are white. In winter it is a shy bird, crouching, running with jerks of the
tail, or taking short flights; it utters a soft whistle, and lays
pinkish-yellow {286}eggs with brown spots in a slight nest on cultivated
lands.
_Actitis hypoleucus_, the Common Sandpiper, breeds in many parts of
Britain, and ranges from the Arctic Circle in Europe and Asia to the
Atlantic Islands, the Mediterranean, the Himalayas, and Japan; it leaves us
before winter, however, and migrates to most of the Ethiopian, Indian, and
Australian Regions. The coloration is greenish-brown above, with dusky
markings, and some white on the wings and tail; the breast is grey with
dark streaks, the belly white. In winter the upper parts are more uniform.
Rapid pebbly streams with islands, or flat stretches of sand are the birds'
favourite resorts, where their shrill whistle and somewhat Wagtail-like
habits make them very conspicuous; they fly, run, perch, or swim with equal
ease. The nest, usually partly sheltered by rough vegetation or drifted
rubbish, contains four reddish-buff eggs with brown and lilac spotting. _A.
macularius_, the Spotted Sandpiper of North America generally, found in
winter southwards to Amazonia and Brazil, is smaller, with round black
spots beneath in summer; it lacks the nearly white eighth and ninth
secondaries of its congener.
_Terekia cinerea_, with the up-curved beak of a Greenshank, but the habits
and eggs of the last genus, breeds from Archangel eastward to the Pacific,
leaving these haunts for the Indian Region to winter, when it is also found
in South Africa and Australia. It is grey and black above, with white on
the secondaries, and black scapulars, and white below streaked with dusky.
_Micropalama himantopus_, the long-legged Stilt-Sandpiper, inhabits the
extreme North-East of America, migrating to Peru and Argentina. It has
black, rufous, and greyish-white upper parts, white tail-coverts, and under
parts with blackish bars; in winter the back is grey, while the bars nearly
disappear beneath. The habits, nest, and eggs are much as in other
Sandpipers.
The Godwits (_Limosa_) have long legs and bills, the latter being slightly
up-curved. _L. belgica_, the Black-tailed Godwit, nested regularly, up to
about 1824, in the eastern counties of England, and, like the Ruff, was
netted for eating. It now breeds from Iceland, the Färoes, and Holland to
Siberia and Amurland, the smaller eastern form being sometimes denominated
_L. melanuroïdes_; the winter range reaches to the Atlantic Islands,
Abyssinia, Ceylon, the Malay Islands, Japan, Australia, and Polynesia.
{287}The breeding plumage is reddish-brown and black above, with rufous
crown, neck, and breast, marked with dusky; the rump and terminal portion
of the tail are black, the basal portion, tail-coverts, alar bar, and belly
white: in winter the upper parts are brownish, the lower grey. The American
representative, _L. hudsonica_, occupies the barren grounds of the north,
and migrates to Patagonia and the Falkland Islands; it has black instead of
nearly white axillaries. Though rarer in Britain than the succeeding
species during the passage in autumn and spring, small flocks of fairly
tame Black-tailed Godwits then frequent our muddy shores and
sands–especially in the south; the summer note, or yelp, is louder than the
winter cry. Four elongated pear-shaped eggs, of a dull olive shade with
brown markings, are deposited in a slightly lined hollow in some grassy
marsh. The males of Godwits constantly incubate. _L. lapponica_, the
shorter-legged Bar-tailed Godwit, inhabits the countries from Finmark
eastward to about the Taimyr Peninsula, where it meets the race _L.
uropygialis_, which extends to Alaska. The western form migrates to the
Gambia, Somaliland and North India, the eastern through Japan and China to
the Malay Archipelago, Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania, rarely
occurring in south-western North America. In summer the mantle is
rufous-brown and black, the head and under parts are chestnut, with dark
markings from the crown to the sides, the rump is white with a few dusky
streaks, the tail and axillaries are white barred with brown: in winter the
upper surface is chiefly grey, and the lower white. _L. uropygialis_ has
the rump also barred. The nest of the Bar-tailed Godwit is usually in
comparatively dry spots, or even on forest-clearings, the eggs being
brighter green and more finely marked than those of the Black-tailed
species. _L. fedoa_, the Marbled Godwit of northern North America, which
winters southwards to Central America and the West Indies, is distinguished
by its large size and buff axillaries.
The almost cosmopolitan genus _Numenius_ is remarkable for its prolonged
decurved bill, and its elongated legs. _N. arquata_, the Curlew or Whaup,
breeds freely on the moorlands of Britain, and extends throughout Northern
Europe and Asia to Lake Baikal; after breeding it visits the Atlantic
Islands, the whole of Africa, and the Indian Region.
{288}[Illustration: FIG. 59.–Curlew. _Numenius arquata._ × ⅕.]
The plumage is pale brown with darker streaks, the rump, tail, and
axillaries being white, and the two latter barred with dark brown; the
belly is white, the breast nearly so in winter. Found on our shores from
autumn to spring, its wary habits are as well-known as its wild rippling
note; the food consists of insects, worms, berries, and so forth; while
four large pear-shaped olive-and-brown eggs are deposited in an ample
depression formed on boggy or heathery ground. _N. cyanopus_, a distinct
East Siberian form, met with in Australia and occasionally from New Guinea
to Borneo in winter, has the rump-region brown and black. _N.
tenuirostris_, of the Mediterranean and South Russia, resembles the Curlew,
but is much smaller; _N. longirostris_ of temperate North America,
migrating to Central America and the Antilles, has cinnamon axillaries–like
all the New World members of the genus–and a dark rump. The remaining
species, or Whimbrels, have a pale central streak down the crown, less
distinct in _N. borealis_, the Eskimo Curlew, which has rufous axillaries
barred with brown, and a rump like the back. This bird wanders to Britain,
but breeds in the extreme north of America, and in winter reaches the south
of that Continent. _N. phaeopus_, the typical {289}Whimbrel or May-bird,
nests in the Shetlands and perhaps still in the Orkneys and North Ronay in
the Hebrides; in summer it takes the place of the Curlew in the Färoes and
Iceland, strays to Greenland, and occupies Northern Europe and Asia; while
it visits the Azores, the whole of Africa, the Indian Region, and Australia
in winter. Specimens from Eastern Asia, with more streaked rumps, have been
separated as _N. variegatus_. In general plumage and habits the Whimbrel
resembles the Curlew; it is, however, much smaller, the cry consists of
sharper and more quickly repeated notes, and the parents, though anxious,
are less shy at the nest. They often descend in a gyrating fashion, closing
one wing. _N. hudsonicus_, of Arctic North America, which winters
throughout South America, and has once occurred in Spain, resembles _N.
borealis_ in its cinnamon axillaries, but is larger and less ruddy beneath.
_N. tahitiensis_, common in the Pacific Islands, and probably breeding in
Alaska, is recognisable by the bristly-pointed flank-feathers; _N.
minutus_, ranging from East Siberia in summer to the Malay Islands and
Australia in winter, has the back of the metatarsus as well as the front
scutellated.
Sub-fam. 3. _Scolopacinae._–_Macrorhamphus griseus_, the Dowitcher,
breeding in the extreme north of North America, and its larger and brighter
western race, _M. scolopaceus_, are rufous birds with darker variegations,
the lower back and tail being white, but the latter and its upper coverts
shewing blackish barring. The bill is widened towards the tip, while in
winter the plumage is grey and white. One form or the other has strayed to
Britain, Western Europe, and Eastern Asia, the range on migration reaching
Brazil and Chili. The habits resemble those of Redshanks. _M.
taczanowskii_, with black-mottled rump, occupies East Siberia, and winters
in India, Borneo, and thence to China.
_Scolopax rusticula_, the well-known Woodcock, brown, grey, and buff in
colour, with blackish vermiculations and blotches above and bars below, has
two transverse buff stripes on the black hind-crown. It inhabits Northern
and Central Europe and Asia–with the Atlantic Islands and Japan–and
migrates to the Mediterranean, Persia, India, Ceylon, and China, or even
strays to eastern North America. Breeding freely in Britain, where large
additional flocks arrive in autumn, it frequents leaf-strewn woods in which
marshy spots or rivulets alternate with dry ground; the food consists of
worms, small molluscs and insects, the first being {290}obtained by probing
the soil with the long sensitive beak. The flight is rapid and steady, the
note–not uttered when flushed–is whistling; while during incubation a
curious habit prevails among the cocks of "roading" or traversing fixed
routes at twilight, and uttering hoarse notes. The nest is a depression,
usually lined with dry leaves; the four eggs, much larger and rounder than
those of the Snipe, are creamy-buff with pale brown, grey, and lilac
markings. The young are often carried by the parents between their thighs,
the bill probably aiding to steady them. Woodcocks are now seldom snared or
netted in England. _S. saturata_ of Java and North-West New Guinea is a
darker bird with almost uniform black primaries, and a white abdomen with
dusky bars. _S. rochusseni_ of the Moluccas has partly bare tibiae, like
many Snipe, and a nearly plain buff breast. The Woodcock of eastern North
America is _Philohela minor_, which has the three outer primaries curiously
attenuated.
[Illustration: FIG. 60.–Woodcock. _Scolopax rusticula._ × 2/7.]
The genus _Gallinago_ differs from the above in having longitudinal stripes
on the head. _G. caelestis_, the Common or Full Snipe,[190] breeds in
Northern and Central Europe and Asia, and even in North Italy; it is
recorded from Greenland and the Bermudas, and migrates to the Atlantic
Islands, the Gambia, the Upper Nile, and the Indian Region. Its brown,
black, and buff plumage, with three buff streaks on the head, is
well-known, while there are normally fourteen rectrices. _G. sabinii_ is
merely a dark form. As regards its autumnal influx and food the Snipe
resembles the Woodcock, but the cry of "scape-scape" and twisting
{291}flight on rising, remain to be mentioned, while the alternate zig-zag
rise and fall of the bird when circling in the air near its nest, with the
curious drumming or bleating noise produced at each descent must not be
omitted. The method of production of this sound is still uncertain, but is
either due to the vibration of the wings, or more probably to that of the
webs of the outer rectrices. The slight nest is formed in a tuft of herbage
in some marshy place, the four pointed eggs being olive, with spots and
oblique blotches of brown. Snipe occasionally perch on trees or squat upon
the ground until touched. The very similar _G. delicata_ (_wilsoni_),
breeding northwards from the northern United States, and migrating to
northern South America, has usually sixteen rectrices, as have the six
following species. _G. major_, the Double or Solitary Snipe, nests as far
south in Europe as Holland and Poland, and reaches the Yenesei; it is known
from the Tian-Shan Mountains, Turkestan, and Persia, and winters even in
Natal and Damara-Land, visiting Britain annually on passage. It rises
silently and heavily when flushed, is to some extent nocturnal, and drums
when on the ground. The three outer tail-feathers are chiefly white.[191]
_G. frenata_, ranging from Argentina and Tarapacá to Venezuela and Guiana;
_G. nobilis_ of Colombia and Ecuador, _G. paraguaiae_, reaching from
Amazonia and Bolivia to the Falklands, _G. macrodactyla_ (_bernieri_) of
Madagascar, and _G. aequatorialis_ (_nigripennis_), of the Ethiopian Region
generally, conclude this section of the genus. _G. australis_ is similar to
our Snipe, but larger; it breeds in Japan, and migrates through Formosa to
Australia; _G. nemoricola_, the Wood-Snipe of the hills of India and Burma,
has the lower parts distinctly barred; _G. solitaria_, breeding at
considerable elevations from Turkestan to Assam and Japan, and wintering in
those countries and China, exhibits distinct white streaks above. In the
three last-named species the rectrices number about eighteen, in the next
six they may be as few as fourteen. South America furnishes five forms
somewhat like Woodcocks in their habits and eggs, namely, _G. gigantea_ of
Brazil and Paraguay, the largest of the Snipes; _G. undulata_ of Guiana;
_G. jamesoni_, ranging from Colombia to Bolivia; _G. imperialis_ of the
former country; and _G. stricklandi_ of Chili and Patagonia. All these
recall the Common Snipe by their coloration, as does the small short-winged
_G. aucklandica_, which, with its different races, {292}occupies the
Auckland, Snares, Chatham, and Antipodes Islands, and has visited New
Zealand. _G. stenura_, the Pin-tailed Snipe, with twenty-six rectrices, the
eight outer of which on each side are stiff and attenuated, breeds from the
Yenesei to the Pacific, and winters in the Indian Region; _G. megala_, with
twelve of its twenty tail-feathers narrowed, inhabits East Siberia and
passes through Japan to China, the Philippines, Borneo, and the Moluccas in
winter. _G._ (_Limnocryptes_) _gallinula_, the Jack Snipe, found in Britain
from autumn to spring, breeds from Scandinavia to Siberia, and migrates to
North Africa, the Indian Region, and Japan. The upper parts show a greenish
and purple gloss, while it has only twelve rectrices. Like _G. major_, it
frequents drier spots than the Common Snipe, and rises without a sound in
the shooting season, the flight being butterfly-like; the habits in summer
are similar to those of the last-named species, and the eggs even larger
for its size.
Of the so-called Painted Snipes the female of _Rhynchaea_ or _Rostratula
capensis_ has a brown head with chestnut cheeks and collar, a
brownish-green back with blackish freckling, scattered golden-buff ocelli
and streaks on the upper parts, a black fore-neck, a white under surface
and ring round the eye. The male is duller, without the chestnut tints.
This species inhabits the whole Ethiopian and most of the Indian Region, as
well as Egypt, Arabia, and Japan; the larger _R. australis_, with only a
chestnut patch on the nape, occupies Australia. _R. semicollaris_ of Chili
and Patagonia, which visits Peru and Brazil, shews no chestnut collar, but
has black upper wing-coverts with round white spots; the sexes being alike.
In mature females of the Old World forms the trachea extends in a loop or
loops over the furcula, or even over the pectoral muscles.[192] The habits
of these birds are Snipe-like, but the flight is slower, and the hen's note
purring; the whitish eggs with plentiful black spots are somewhat
Plover-like, while _R. semicollaris_ apparently lays only two. The Indian
species is said to hiss at intruders, with its wings and tail expanded into
a disc.
The short-winged _Phegornis mitchelli_, which lacks a hallux, is brown
above, and white with very close dusky bars below; the head is black, save
for a white band which surrounds the occiput; while a neck-collar is formed
by a fine orange patch behind and a white area in front. It inhabits the
Andes from Peru to Chili.
Fam. II. CHIONIDIDAE.–This group–with _Dromas_–possibly {293}connects the
Charadriidae and the Laridae. The peculiar bill and short, entirely
reticulated metatarsus have already been mentioned (pp. 268-269), while
both sexes are pure white, the downy young being grey. _Chionis alba_, the
"Kelp Pigeon" of the Falklands, which inhabits the Straits of Magellan, New
Year Island, South Georgia and Louis-Philippe Land, and has once been shot
in Ireland, has the bill pinkish or yellowish with a black tip and flat
sheath; the bare face is covered with whitish papillae, and the feet are
bluish. _C. minor_, of Kerguelen Land, Prince Edward and Marion Islands,
and the Crozets, has the sheath protuberant, the bill and facial caruncle
black, and the feet pinkish. There is said to be a blunt black carpal spur,
less prominent in the female. Both species are often found at sea, flying
strongly, or sailing with outspread wings; but on land their appearance,
gait, and manner of courting are curiously like those of Pigeons. The note
is a gentle chuckle; the food consists of mussels–which they break with
ease–crustaceans, sea-weed, and even eggs of other birds; their own eggs,
two or rarely three in number, are of the Oyster-catcher type, but commonly
redder in the markings, so that they recall those of the Razor-bill or
Tropic-bird. When the flocks separate into pairs for breeding, they are
tame and inquisitive, while they fashion a nest of dried plant-stems in
hollows among rocks, or occasionally in Petrels' burrows.
Fam. III. GLAREOLIDAE.–Of these Old World forms Sub-fam. 1, _Glareolinae_,
includes the genera _Glareola_, _Cursorius_, _Pluvianus_, and perhaps
_Ortyxelus_, the first two having the middle claw pectinated, and
_Glareola_ a short, stout bill with wide gape, a forked tail, and long
pointed wings. _G. pratincola_, the Pratincole, which occasionally visits
Britain by way of Western France, breeds in Southern Europe and North
Africa, and extends to Sind and the Tian-Shan Mountains in Asia, migrating
to other parts of India and to South Africa. It is brown above, with
blacker wings and tail, the secondaries having white tips, and the
rectrices white bases and coverts; the throat is buff, surrounded by a
black line, the breast brownish, the abdomen white; the axillaries and
inner under wing-coverts are chestnut, the bill and feet blackish, with red
base to the former. _G. orientalis_, found from Mongolia to Ceylon, the
Malay Archipelago, and North Australia, has the tail less forked and little
white on the secondaries; _G. ocularis_, of Madagascar, recorded from
Mauritius and East Africa, has a pale chestnut {294}breast, and the outer
pair of rectrices white with broad black ends; _G. melanoptera_
(_nordmanni_) of South-East Europe and West Asia, migrating to South
Africa, has black axillaries and under wing-coverts, as have the
long-legged _G. grallaria_ (_isabella_) with slightly forked tail and
chestnut flanks, which breeds in Eastern Australia and occurs from New
Guinea to Borneo, and the small grey-backed _G. lactea_ of India, Ceylon,
and Burma, with much white on the wings. The other species have reddish
feet, fading to yellow; _G. cinerea_, ranging from the Niger to the Congo,
possesses a rufous nuchal collar and white axillaries; _G. nuchalis_ of the
White Nile, and the hardly separable _G. emini_ of Foda in Equatorial
Africa, have a white collar and grey axillaries; _G. megapoda_, extending
from Liberia to the Niger, shews a rufous collar and grey axillaries. The
last five forms, and _G. ocularis_, have the tail merely emarginated.
Pratincoles have a shrill, screaming note and Swallow-like flight, insects,
on which they feed, being ordinarily captured on the wing; but the general
habits are those of Plovers, the birds running very fast, and the parents
often swooping down upon an intruder, or cowering on the ground to draw
attention from their brood. They frequent sand-banks, lagoons, bare plains,
or coast-lands, laying two, three, or rarely four oval greenish-buff or
greyish eggs, with purplish-black, brown, and grey marblings, without any
nest, on the sun-baked mud.
The genus _Cursorius_, or Courser, inhabits the hotter portions of the Old
World. _C. gallicus_, the Cream-coloured Courser, which visits Britain and
the southern half of Europe irregularly, is met with in the Canary and Cape
Verd Islands, North Africa, and the countries from Arabia to Northern
India. The brown bill is thick and decurved, the whitish legs are long; the
plumage is buff, with slaty nape, black remiges, axillaries, under
wing-coverts, and subterminal tail-bar; the face is white with a black
post-ocular streak. Seldom found in flocks, this bird frequents dry sandy
plains and deserts, crouching to avoid notice, running with extraordinary
speed if approached, but rarely rising on the wing. The flight, however, is
at times protracted. The food consists almost entirely of insects, such as
grasshoppers, yet it includes small molluscs; the note is harsh; while two,
or exceptionally three, round stone-coloured eggs with grey and brown
markings are deposited on the bare ground. The axillaries and under
wing-coverts are greyish-buff in _C. somalensis_, of Somaliland, but
brownish-grey in _C. {295}rufus_, of South Africa, which has a black
abdominal patch. _C. temmincki_ (_senegalensis_), of most of the Ethiopian
Region, and _C. coromandelicus_, of India and Ceylon, are similar, but have
the nape black and white, the latter possessing white tail-coverts.
In the remaining species (_Rhinoptilus_ of some authors) the bill is almost
straight. _C. bicinctus_ of South Africa is mottled with brown above,
having much chestnut on the wings, white tail-coverts, and buff under parts
crossed by two black pectoral bars. _C. bisignatus_, ranging from East
Africa to Benguela, and _C. hartingi_ of Somali-Land, are hardly more than
races of the above. _C. cinctus_ of East Equatorial Africa, and the barely
separable _C. seebohmi_ of South-West Africa, are easily recognised by the
four bands on the white lower surface, the highest and lowest being brown,
and the two intermediate black, with a streaky buff space between them. _C.
chalcopterus_, of the Ethiopian Region generally, and _C. albifasciatus_
with a more distinct white alar bar, are plain brown birds with metallic
purple hues on the black primaries, white post-ocular streak and throat,
and white belly surmounted by a black band. _C. bitorquatus_, of the
districts near Madras, differs in shewing below three successive bands or
gorgets, one of rufous and two of brown, separated by white. Though all
Coursers agree in general habits, the last three seem to prefer bushy
ground, and _C. rufus_ will perch in trees.
_Pluvianus aegyptius_, apparently allied to _Cursorius_, inhabits West and
North-East Africa, wandering to Palestine and South Europe, and being even
recorded from Sweden. The head, nape, and long mantle-feathers overhanging
the grey back are glossy black; the wings and tail are black and white
varied with grey, the lower parts rufous-white with a black pectoral band,
while a line of white encircles the crown. This bird, called "Zic-zac" from
its noisy chattering cry (cf. p. 276), is usually seen skimming swiftly
over the water, or running and feeding along the shores. The yellowish
stone-coloured eggs, with umber and grey markings, are commonly found
buried in the sand, but so are those of the Ringed Plover in wind-swept
spots. Probably this species, and not _Hoplopterus spinosus_, is the
τροχίλος of Herodotus, the Crocodile-bird of later writers, which enters
the Crocodile's mouth to feed.
Here may possibly be placed the mottled rufous, black, and white _Ortyxelus
meiffreni_ of West and North-East Africa.[193]
{296}Sub-fam. 2. _Dromadinae._–This contains only _Dromas ardeola_, the
curious Crab-Plover, with its straight, hard compressed bill, long legs,
webbed toes, and pectinated middle claw. It is white, with the elongated
dorsal feathers and most of the wings black, the tail chiefly grey. Found
from the Red Sea to Natal, and through the Indian Ocean to the Bay of
Bengal, it haunts sandy islands or sandbanks on the coast, flying, running,
or walking with equal ease. This bird feeds on small crustaceans, and
breeds in company, depositing a single large white egg on the bare sand in
a deep burrow, where the young remain for a considerable time.
Fam. IV. THINOCORYTHIDAE.–The so-called South American Seed-Snipes are a
generalized group of somewhat Fowl-like birds, with long wings and short
legs. _Thinocorys rumicivorus_, of Peru, Bolivia, Chili, Argentina, and
Patagonia, is yellowish-brown and black above, with whitish tips to the
dark remiges and rectrices, and creamy white below with a black pectoral
band, which sends a streak upwards to bifurcate round the white throat. The
female has a less extensive band, and an ashy-brown fore-neck. _T.
orbignianus_, of Peru, Chili, and Bolivia, differs in its grey breast with
no central streak; it has a black border to the throat, and a grey nape,
which is absent in the female. _Attagis gayi_, of the same countries, has
grey and rufous upper parts with black spots and vermiculations, and pale
cinnamon under parts, with a greyish fore-neck shewing fine black lines.
_A. chimborazensis_ of Ecuador is blacker above and darker below; _A.
malouina_, of the Straits of Magellan and the Falkland Islands, has a white
lower surface and a rufous chest with round black spots. These forms
usually frequent hill-country, and to the north of their range even haunt
the higher Andes, living on vegetable substances, and especially seeds of
docks and other plants. They run with great celerity over the stony ravines
or grassy plains, but they often squat or creep away from intruders; when
flushed they rise sharply with twisting flight like the Snipe, and utter a
similar cry. On the ground they make curious hollow or whistling noises,
the flocks answering one another as they sit, and being very hard to
distinguish, from their earthy coloration. The nest of _Thinocorys_ is a
depression slightly lined with grass, and contains some four drab or
pinkish-buff pear-shaped eggs, thickly speckled with chocolate and
purplish-grey, which the female is said to cover when she leaves them,
while the male anxiously keeps watch from some neighbouring stone.
{297}Fam. V. OEDICNEMIDAE.–Of these birds, which lack the hind toe,
_Oedicnemus scolopax_, the Stone-Curlew, or Norfolk Plover, a summer
visitor to the warrens of East Anglia, and the downs or stony flats of the
South of England, ranges from our shores and the Atlantic Islands through
temperate Europe and North Africa to Lake Saisan and Burma in Asia. This
largest of European Plovers is light brown above and buff below, with
blackish streaks throughout; the throat, belly, a line below the eye, and
two narrow alar bars are white, the remiges otherwise black, the tail
brown, black, and white. The feet, base of the bill, and very large iris
are yellow. This skulking semi-nocturnal species flies strongly, though it
prefers to squat or run, and takes to the wing reluctantly; towards winter
it is gregarious, as are so many of the Charadriiformes. The mournful
whistling cry, more mellow than that of the Golden Plover, is chiefly heard
at twilight, when the bird feeds upon worms, insects, molluscs, or even
reptiles, frogs, and mice. Two oval stone-coloured eggs, blotched or
scrawled with black, are laid on bare ground or among stones, and in India
sometimes under bushes; while the newly-hatched young are decidedly torpid,
contrary to Limicoline custom. Other species with streaked breasts are _Oe.
senegalensis_, of West and North-East Africa, with only one white wing-bar;
_Oe. vermiculatus_, of East and South Africa, with vermiculated upper
parts; _Oe. capensis_, of much the same districts, with coarse blotches and
bars above; and the large _Oe. grallarius_ of Australia with a broad brown
stripe down each side of the neck. _Oe. affinis_ of North-East Africa is
barely distinct from _Oe. capensis_. The forms with almost uniform breasts,
and a black patch or line over the eye, are _Oe. bistriatus_,[194] ranging
from Mexico to North Brazil, with mottled, and _Oe. superciliaris_ of Peru
with vermiculated, back; as well as two fine birds separated as _Aesacus_.
_Ae. recurvirostris_, of India, Ceylon, and Burma, has a stout, slightly
recurved bill and nearly plain upper surface; _Ae. magnirostris_, extending
from the Andaman Islands to the Philippines, Australia, the Solomons, and
New Caledonia, differs in its straight bill and blackish lores. The former
breeds on sand-banks up rivers, the latter on sea-beaches, both feeding
upon crustaceans and molluscs. Some of the Family occasionally frequent low
hills, and _Oe. bistriatus_ is kept to destroy insects in Nicaragua.
Fam. VI. PARRIDAE.–Of the extraordinary long-toed Jaçanas, {298}_Parra
jacana_, ranging from Ecuador and Guiana to Bolivia and Argentina, has a
red frontal lappet, bilobed posteriorly, a red wattle at each side of the
gape, an orange bill, olive feet, and a well-developed yellow carpal spur.
The plumage is chestnut, with greenish-black head, neck, and under parts,
maroon sides, and yellow remiges, the wing- and tail-quills being tipped
with brownish-black. _P. melanopygia_ of Panama and Colombia is darker and
more maroon above; _P. nigra_, of those countries and Venezuela, is
entirely greenish-black, except for the wings; _P. gymnostoma_
(_variabilis_), found from South Texas to Costa Rica, with Cuba, Porto
Rico, and Haiti, has the frontal lappet trilobed, lacks the rictal wattles,
and in colour resembles _P. melanopygia_, though the maroon extends to the
belly. The young in this genus are chiefly bronzy-brown above and
buffish-white below; and the nestlings–at least in _P. gymnostoma_–are
curiously marked with tawny, black, buff, and white. _Metopidius indicus_,
occurring from India to Cochin China, and in Sumatra, Java, and Celebes,
has a large blue frontal shield, small blunt spurs, and no rictal wattles;
the bill is pink, blue, and green; the feet are slaty. The head, neck,
remiges, and under parts are greenish-black, varying to purple, the chin
and superciliary streak are white, the mantle is bronze, the lower back
maroon, and the tail chestnut. The young are much greener above than in the
last genus. _M. albinucha_ of Madagascar and _M. africanus_ of most of the
Ethiopian Region have a smaller shield, loosely connected behind, which is
grey in the former, leaden blue in the latter, as are the bill and feet.
The cinnamon-brown plumage is varied in the first-named by a black occiput
and throat and white nape, in its congener by a white neck, black nape, and
golden upper breast. The tail is chestnut and the primaries black. The very
small _Microparra capensis_, of South and South-East Africa, has no shield
or wattles, and is greyish-brown, becoming orange on the crown, rump, and
tail; the nape and upper mantle are purplish-black, the wings blackish with
a white alar bar, the under parts white with golden sides to the neck. The
bill and feet are brownish, the spur in this genus and the next being as in
_Metopidius_. _Hydralector gallinaceus_, ranging from Borneo and Celebes to
New Guinea and Australia–if _H. novae guineae_ be not separated–is chiefly
black; the back being greyish-olive, the throat and abdomen white, the
cheeks, with the sides and front of the neck, golden. A red lappet with an
erect central protuberance covers the forehead; the bill is {299}red,
yellow, and black; the legs are red and olive. Young birds are mainly
reddish-brown, with white below. _Hydrophasianus chirurgus_, of most of the
Indian Region, is bronzy-brown above and purplish-black below, with no
fleshy outgrowths, but a large, sharp spur. The head is white with black
occiput, the neck golden behind and white in front, with an intervening
black lateral stripe; the wings are mainly white, with curious filamentous
appendages to the attenuated blackish outer primaries; the four median
feathers of the dark brown tail are enormously elongated and decurved. The
winter and immature plumage is almost entirely bronzy-brown, with white
under surface crossed by a black gorget; but the young have a rufous head.
[Illustration: FIG. 61.–Indian Jaçana. _Hydrophasianus chirurgus._ × ¼.]
All the members of this Family frequent lakes and swamps, whether inland or
near the coast, _Hydrophasianus chirurgus_ occurring at considerable
elevations; while at least that species, _Parra jacana_, and _Metopidius
indicus_, are gregarious in winter. On their favourite lagoons, bordered by
a dense fringe of aquatic plants, these active birds may be seen gracefully
striding or running upon the floating leaves of water-lilies and like
plants, as their long toes easily enable them to do. When danger threatens
they crouch or submerge themselves partially, _Hydralector_ being perhaps
the best diver, where all are good. Tame when unmolested, they rise
reluctantly, scuttling over the water with {300}trailing legs after the
fashion of a Moor-hen, or fluttering and gliding in turn to the nearest
shelter at a good pace. On the ground the gait is easy. Small parties of
_Parra jacana_ are said to gather together when feeding, and to utter
quick, excited cries, while going through a singular performance or dance,
with outstretched, agitated wings and alternate slow and fluttering
movements.[195] Some species are especially quarrelsome; _Microparra_ has a
habit of bobbing its head up and down like a Plover; the male of _Parra
jacana_ is particularly sedulous in warning the female from the nest; and
both parents commonly "sham wounded" to protect their young. The cry is
loud and harsh, or mewing in _Hydrophasianus_; the food consists of
insects, molluscs, seeds, and roots; the nest is a small cup, or not
uncommonly a large mass, of aquatic herbage, placed in grass or rushes, or
on floating vegetation. The four beautiful eggs are more or less
pear-shaped, and are glossy buff, olive, green, or brown, thickly covered
with fantastic scrawls, and occasionally with black or brown blotches.
_Metopidius indicus_, however, is said to lay as many as ten, while those
of _Hydrophasianus_ are plain brown or green.
A fossil Limicoline form, _Palaeotringa_, occurs in the Cretaceous rocks of
New Jersey; France furnishes _Limosa_ and _Tringa_ from the Eocene,
_Camascelus_ (allied to the Plovers) from the transition beds, _Milnea_
(near _Oedicnemus_), _Tringa_, _Himantopus_, and _Numenius_ from the
Miocene. The same formation in both France and Germany provides _Helornis_
(akin to _Limicola_), and _Totanus_; the Pliocene of Italy the latter;
_Gallinago_ is found in the Chatham Islands; _Charadrius_ in North America.
Fam. VII. LARIDAE.–This consists of four Sub-families (1) _Stercorariinae_
or Skuas, (2) _Larinae_ or Gulls, (3) _Rhynchopinae_ or Skimmers, and (4)
_Sterninae_ or Terns. Mr. Saunders[196] is, however, probably right in
distinguishing a second Family, _Stercorariidae_; and possibly a third,
_Rhynchopidae_, might be admitted.
In the _Larinae_ the strong, horny bill is of moderate length, though
exceptionally small in _Rhodostethia_, the maxilla being curved, but hardly
hooked; in the _Stercorariinae_ there is a distinct hook, and the base is
covered by a cere, said to be hard or soft according to the season, and
possibly, shed after the manner of certain Auks.[197] In the _Sterninae_
the beak is nearly straight and {301}pointed, while comparatively slender;
in the _Rhynchopinae_, the maxilla, which moves vertically with ease, is
much shorter than the mandible, and both are compressed anteriorly until
they resemble truncated knife blades. The tibia is generally partly bare;
the metatarsus is fairly long in the first two Sub-families, and is
scutellated in front, being usually smooth behind, though rougher in
_Pagophila_; the anterior toes are fully webbed, with claws which vary from
weak to moderate, or even to strong and hooked, as in the _Stercorariinae_.
The elevated hallux is joined by a membrane to the inner toe in
_Leucophaeus_, and is rudimentary or absent in _Rissa_. In the _Sterninae_
and _Rhynchopinae_ the metatarsus is short–especially in the latter, where
the web between the inner and middle digits is deeply incised, as are both
webs in _Hydrochelidon_ and _Gygis_; the claws are long, slender, and
curved. The pointed wings, excessively lengthened in the two last-mentioned
Sub-families, have eleven primaries, of which the outer is particularly
small, and from fifteen to twenty-three secondaries. The tail may be nearly
even as in _Larus_, deeply forked as in _Sterna_ generally, less excised as
in _Xema_, _Hydrochelidon_, _Naenia_, and _Rhynchops_, graduated or cuneate
as in _Rhodostethia_, _Anous_, and _Gygis_; all the twelve feathers being
rounded or acute: in the _Stercorariinae_ the two central rectrices project
beyond the others, being decidedly pointed in _Stercorarius crepidatus_ and
_S. parasiticus_, but rounded and twisted in the shaft until the webs are
vertical in _S. pomatorhinus_. The furcula is U-shaped, the syrinx
tracheo-bronchial, the tongue lanceolate, the nostrils are pervious; an
after-shaft is present, while both adults and young have abundant down,
that of the latter commonly shewing a mixture of white, with grey,
yellowish, slaty, or brown. _Naenia_ has elongated plumes at the gape, and
a few Terns have slight nuchal crests.
Gulls and Skuas are widely-ranging and essentially marine birds, even those
species which nest inland being commonly observed near salt water, and
seeking the coast when incubation is over. They are always inclined to be
gregarious, and are more or less resident in Britain, but the undoubted
influx of birds from abroad in autumn makes it difficult, or even
impossible, to determine their exact status in every case. Their untiring
and easy flight is only second to that of the larger Petrels; the majestic
style of the Great Black-backed Gull, and other forms, being a great
contrast to the wavering but graceful movements of the Kittiwake or
{302}Bonaparte's Gull. All walk well, though sedately, swim to perfection,
and rise easily both from land and water, usually breaking into a run
before taking to the wing from the ground; while they almost invariably
alight with uplifted pinions. The wild characteristic note varies less than
in most large groups, that of the bigger species being harsh and querulous,
that of the smaller laughing or screaming; the lesser Skuas give vent to a
curious mewing cry, and the Great Skuas to a similar but deeper sound. At
the breeding-quarters the utterances are naturally more agitated and
shrill, and the parents hang excitedly above a visitor's head. The food
consists mainly of fish, molluscs, crustaceans, and worms, but is varied in
the stronger forms by small mammals, young birds, and eggs: the Great
Black-backed Gull undoubtedly attacks lambs and weakly ewes; carrion is not
uncommonly devoured; and _Larus maculipennis_ acts as a scavenger at Buenos
Aires, besides clearing the country of grasshoppers, and robbing the
Cayenne Lapwing of its insect booty. Skuas give chase to their smaller kin,
and force them to disgorge the fishes they have just caught, while even
Solan Geese are sometimes victimized; _Larus scopulinus_, moreover, which
robs the Oyster-catcher of New Zealand, is a further instance of parasitic
habits. Insects and their larvae, turnips, berries, and grain are also
eaten by these omnivorous but useful creatures. Their main sustenance is
naturally derived from the ocean, or its oozy shores; but flocks are
commonly seen on pastures and arable lands near the beach, or following the
plough further from the sea, though not being of the species which breed in
the interior, nor driven inland by stress of weather. At times Gulls
almost, if not quite, disappear below the water when swooping on their
prey, and Kittiwakes have been said to pursue it beneath the surface. A
common habit is that of preening and washing the plumage in company at
favoured spots, while one that is less well-known is that of casting up the
indigestible parts of the food in pellets, as do many other birds. The
nesting sites are very frequently precipitous rocks and stony islands, but
inland marshes and lakes accommodate many species, while in certain
localities trees as high as thirty feet are selected. Skuas breed on moors
or hills near the sea in Scotland, on the fells of Scandinavia, and on the
tundras and barren grounds of the Arctic Regions, the nest being a mere
depression in the herbage or moss; the {303}remainder of the tribe
generally collect a mass of grass, moss, flags, sedges, heather, twigs, or
sea-weed, though a mere hollow in the soil or sand often serves their
purpose. The eggs vary in number from two in the case of the Ivory Gull and
the Skuas to three or exceptionally four; they are brown, drab, or green,
with blotches and spots of brown, black, grey, and lilac, and recall those
of Plovers. Both sexes have been said to incubate in _Larus minutus_ and
_Rissa brevirostris_; the young are comparatively helpless for a few hours
or perhaps days, and are at first fed by the parents.
Terns resemble Gulls in many of their habits, but are more cosmopolitan,
and decidedly migratory in Britain; they are essentially marine, yet some
species breed on inland waters in summer. Particularly slender and
graceful, these long-winged birds may usually be distinguished by their
irregular or hovering flight, and are known as Sea-swallows; while their
method of beating up and down maritime streams or shallows, singly or in
pairs, in search of fish, is quite peculiar to themselves. At such times
they make constant plunges into the water, often completely immersing their
bodies, or occasionally discontinue their operations to engage in trivial
and seemingly amicable quarrels. The note, though hoarse in some cases, is
usually a squealing or grating sound, the latter especially when disturbed;
the food consists of fish and crustaceans, insects–said to be sometimes
taken on the wing–frogs, newts, locusts, grasshoppers, caterpillars,
leeches, molluscs, and medusae. Terns are wary but bold, commonly circling
around a wounded companion until several are shot; the Noddies (_Anous_),
however, are much more sluggish and silent. On the ground all move with
comparative ease. The nest of _Hydrochelidon_ is a mass of water-weeds
placed on some tussock in a wet inland swamp; that of _Anous_, when
situated on trees, bushes, or rocky ledges, is composed of twigs, sea-weed,
and like materials; but most species merely make a hole in the sand or
soil, with little or no lining. Depressions on level rocks, the surface of
prostrate plants, and heathery, grassy, or muddy flats are often utilized
as alternatives, while colonies are usually formed. Two or three olive,
reddish-brown, green, or stone-coloured eggs, with blotches, spots,
scrawls, or oblique streaks of black, brown, grey, or lilac, are deposited;
the Noddy and Sooty Terns, however, have a single white egg with red
markings, and _Gygis_ one, which is buff, marbled, spotted, or often
scrolled with brown and grey, and is laid on any slight cavity of {304}a
branch, a broad leaf-stalk, or a coral reef. The nesting habits of _Naenia_
are unknown, but it frequents rocky, cavernous shores.
_Rhynchops_ has a peculiarly low flight, rapid and gliding, with many a
turn and twist, which has gained it the name of Skimmer. The food, often
sought towards evening, appears to consist of small fish and crustaceans;
it is procured by keeping the bill wide open, with the long mandible
ploughing through the water or mud, and leaving a distinct furrow in its
track. The cry is a low harsh scream or shrill twittering note. A hollow in
some sandy river-bank or island serves to contain the three or four grey,
green, buff, or white eggs, with blotches and streaks of purplish-grey and
dark brown. The female is said to sit only at night or in stormy weather,
and the young to be unable to fly for several weeks,[198] but the remaining
habits resemble those of Terns.
The sexes in the Laridae are invariably similar, the plumage being grey and
white, or more rarely blackish or brown, details of which will be found
below. The young are duller, being mottled with brown or black in immature
Gulls. The frequent black or brown heads, often lacking at certain ages or
times of year, the seasonal changes generally, the neck-collar of _Xema
sabinii_ and _Rhodostethia_, and the rosy tint on the breast in the latter
species, _Larus franklini_, and _Sterna dougalli_ may be noticed in
passing. The members of the Family range in size from the Glaucous to the
Little Gull; the largest Tern being the Caspian, and the smallest, as its
name indicates, the Least Tern.
Sub-fam. 1. _Stercorariinae._–Of this widely spread but curiously
distributed group, _Megalestris catarrhactes_, the Great Skua or Bonxie, a
fine rufous-brown species, with a white wing-patch which is very
conspicuous in flight, breeds in Shetland, the Färoes, Iceland, and
possibly north of Hudson Strait, occurring in South Greenland and Norway,
and reaching New England and Gibraltar in winter. It nests in colonies,
though each pair occupies a distinct area, which the parents defend with
exceptional boldness, swooping down swiftly with a heavy rush, and dropping
the feet when at close quarters, as if to strike an intruder. Unlike their
smaller kin, which will attack a man from any side and hit him with their
wings, these birds commonly aim directly at the face, and their onslaught,
if not averted, is really dangerous, while they only just clear the head
when threatened with a stick. The two eggs, deposited in a depression
{305}in the herbage, are dull brown or greenish, with somewhat indistinct
umber markings. The food consists chiefly of fish, which the smaller Gulls
are forced to disgorge, while Kittiwakes and the like are themselves
occasionally devoured in default of other prey. _M. chilensis_, spotted
with chestnut above, and more rufous below, occupies America south of Rio
de Janeiro and Callao; the sooty-brown _M. antarctica_–the stouter-billed
Port Egmont or Sea Hen–replacing it from the Falklands to the Australian
and New Zealand seas, and reaching northwards to the Comoros and
Madagascar. In the Antarctic Victoria Land occurs a paler form, _M.
maccormicki_.
_Stercorarius pomatorhinus_, the Pomatorhine Skua, breeds on the tundras of
Siberia and possibly from Greenland to Bering Sea, migrating to Britain and
as far as South Africa, North Australia, and Peru. The plumage is brown,
with blacker head and gorget, white breast, and acuminate white
neck-feathers tipped with yellow. The projecting median rectrices with
their vertically twisted vanes are mentioned above (p. 301). Uniform brown
specimens may be immature. _S. crepidatus_, the Arctic Skua, is smaller,
and nests as far south as Northern and Western Scotland, but properly
occupies Arctic and sub-Arctic Europe, Asia, and America; in winter, it
reaches South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Brazil. The elongated
rectrices are not twisted, but are pointed, while a uniform dark phase–the
true _S. richardsoni_–is common to both sexes. _S. parasiticus_, Buffon's
Skua, distinguished from the last-named by its extremely prolonged
rectrices and greyer upper surface, breeds on the Scandinavian fells and
throughout the Arctic tundras and barren grounds, migrating as far south as
Gibraltar and lat. 40° N. in America. The habits of the members of this
genus are similar to those of _Megalestris_, but their quicker flight
enables them to rob even Terns, and the mewing cry is most peculiar, while
the eggs are intermediate in style between those of Whimbrels and Gulls.
These small Skuas often destroy Lemmings.
Sub-fam. 2. _Larinae._–_Rissa tridactyla_, the Kittiwake, breeds from the
circumpolar regions southwards to the Kuril Islands, the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, and North-West France; in winter it reaches western North
America, the Bermudas, the Canaries, the Mediterranean, and the Caspian.
The feet are black, the hind-toe is absent or rudimentary. From _Larus
canus_, which it closely resembles when flying, it can be distinguished by
the absence of white spots at the ends of the primaries. The young bird, or
{306}Tarrock, is much variegated with dark grey or black, and has a
blackish tip to the tail, as is the case in most fresh-water Gulls. Many
fine colonies inhabit the loftier cliffs of Great Britain, the nests of
sea-weed and grass being closely crowded together, and the eggs exhibiting
softer colours than is usual in the Sub-family. The darker _R.
brevirostris_ of Bering Sea has red feet.
_Pagophila eburnea_, the Ivory Gull, seems truly circumpolar, while it
accidentally visits Britain, Northern Europe, and New Brunswick. It is pure
white, with black feet, the young shewing grey and black variations. It
will eat whale- or seal-offal.
_Leucophaeus scoresbii_, of South Patagonia, the Falkland Islands, and the
neighbouring Antarctic seas, has a crimson bill, coarse red feet, with
somewhat excised webs, a dark hood in immature examples, and a white tail.
_Gabianus pacificus_ of Australia and Tasmania is somewhat like _Larus
marinus_, but has a very short stout bill and a black-banded tail.
In the genus _Larus_, as throughout this Family, the arrangement followed
is that of Mr. Howard Saunders,[199] much of whose admirable work is here
incorporated. His first section comprises species with a white tail but no
hood, the young having the head striated. Of these, _L. glaucus_, the
Burgomaster or Glaucous Gull, and _L. leucopterus_, the Iceland Gull, are
the only members of the group with nearly white primaries, the former being
larger, with proportionately shorter wings. In summer the former is
circumpolar, and the latter occurs from Jan Mayen to Greenland and perhaps
the west side of Baffin Bay; in winter both visit Britain, but the latter
only reaches the Gulf of Gascony, and Boston in America, whereas its ally
extends to the Mediterranean, the Caspian, Japan, California, and the
Bermudas. At this season the head shows brown markings; while the young are
entirely mottled, though they apparently become creamy white just before
assuming the grey mantle. _L. glaucescens_ of the North Pacific, _L.
nelsoni_ of North-West America, and _L. kumlieni_ of Cumberland Sound have
the quills chequered with grey, and connect the above with the following or
blacker-quilled group.
_L. argentatus_, our Herring Gull, has a blue-grey mantle; the black
primaries shew white tips and "mirrors" or round white marks, as well as a
grey wedge on the inner web; the feet are flesh-coloured, {307}the orbits
yellowish. In winter the head is streaked, and in the young the plumage is
mottled with brown. This species extends over Northern Europe and most of
North America, ranging to the south of those countries in the cold season;
its representative in the Mediterranean and Central Asia is _L.
cachinnans_, with yellow feet and red orbits, and in Arctic Siberia _L.
vegae_, chiefly differing from the last-named in its pinkish legs. _L.
audouini_ of the Western Mediterranean has blackish feet, and a crimson
bill with black band. _L. canus_, the Common Gull, found throughout
Northern Europe and Asia, and migrating to the Mediterranean, the Nile, the
Persian Gulf, and China, has white mirrors on the first three primaries,
yellow bill, and greenish-yellow feet. It has occurred in Labrador, and
breeds in North Britain on islands, lakes, and flat stacks, though rarely,
if ever, on cliff-faces; the shrill note is more like that of the Herring
Gull than the harsh cry of our Black-backs. The smaller and darker _L.
brachyrhynchus_ occupies North-Western America, reaching California in
winter; the paler _L. delawarensis_, with a subterminal black band on the
yellowish bill, frequents lakes and marshes in North America, and breeds
towards the north; _L. californicus_, with little black on the beak,
inhabits western North America.
Of the Black-backed Gulls, _L. marinus_, the Great Black-back, largest of
the Family except _L. glaucus_, is found from Arctic Europe to North-East
America, migrating as far as the Mediterranean, the Canaries, and Florida;
it has a grey wedge on the primaries like the Herring Gull, and pinkish
feet. Somewhat scarce in Britain in summer and comparatively
non-gregarious, it is noted for its fierceness, and will even attack sheep.
The smaller _L. dominicanus_, with olive feet, ranges from lat. 10° S. in
South America to South Africa and New Zealand, with the corresponding
Antarctic Seas; _L. schistisagus_ of the North Pacific being intermediate
between this and the next species. _L. fuscus_, the Lesser Black-back,
found both on our shores and inland, has yellow feet; its main range covers
North Europe, excluding Iceland; but it even breeds in Morocco and on the
Red Sea, extending in winter still further southwards. The similar _L.
affinis_ of North Russia and West Siberia, with coarser feet, migrates to
Somaliland, India, and occasionally other districts; the very stout-billed
_L. occidentalis_ represents our species on the Pacific coast of North
America.
Mr. Saunders's next section contains five Gulls resembling {308}the last
group in having no hood and a white tail; but here the young have the head
and tail-coverts unspotted. To this belong _L. bulleri_ of New Zealand, the
Chatham and Auckland Islands, with black bill and feet, which haunts inland
rivers; and also four marine forms with crimson bill and feet. These are
_L. scopulinus_ of New Zealand, the Chatham and Auckland Islands; the
larger _L. novae hollandiae_ of Australia, Tasmania, and New Caledonia; the
South African _L. hartlaubi_, found in Madagascar; and _L. gelastes_,
ranging from North-West Africa and the Mediterranean to the Caspian and
Sind, which lays its Tern-like eggs on sand-banks.
The third section differs in having a subterminal black band on the tail,
and, in the young, an irregularly striated hood. _L. crassirostris_, of the
Chinese and Japanese Seas, has the base of the tail and the under parts
white, the bill yellow, banded with red and black, the feet yellowish; _L.
belcheri_, of Peru and Chili, has a blackish mantle and stouter beak; _L.
heermani_ of western North America has the tail black except for a white
tip, a grey lower surface, red bill, and black feet; _L. modestus_, also of
Peru and Chili, differing in its decidedly grey tail and black beak.
The last-named is a connecting link with the fourth section, containing the
Hooded Gulls; that is, those with hoods in mature plumage, but no marked
hood in the young. Of these, all except the first three have the mantle
grey and the head more or less white in winter; they are rather small
birds, which chiefly inhabit the north, commonly breed in marshes, and
utter a shrill querulous cry.
_L. fuliginosus_ of the Galápagos, and _L. leucophthalmus_ of the Red Sea
and Gulf of Aden, are deep lead-coloured above with black head; but the
former is grey below with no admixture of white, while the latter has a
white nuchal collar, as has the much browner _L. hemprichi_, extending from
East Africa to Bombay. _L. cirrocephalus_ of Brazil, Argentina, and West
and Central East Africa, which occurs in Peru and Natal, has a pale grey
head; whereas a brown hood distinguishes _L. brunneicephalus_ of
Central–and in winter Southern–Asia, _L. maculipennis_, ranging from Brazil
to Patagonia and Chili, _L. glaucodes_ of Chili, Patagonia, and the
Falklands, and _L. ridibundus_, the British Black-headed or Peewit Gull,
which occupies Europe and temperate Asia, migrating to North Africa, India,
and China. These four differ considerably in the pattern of the
primaries,[200] {309}but all have red bill and feet. The colonies of our
marsh-breeding species supply large quantities of eggs for eating.
[Illustration: FIG. 62.–Great Black-headed Gull. _Larus ichthyaëtus._ ×
2/13.]
Of the black-hooded, grey-mantled forms, which have as a rule red bill and
feet, _L. atricilla_, the Laughing Gull, of the Atlantic coast of North
America and Western Mexico, alone has black outer primaries; this species
and _L. franklini_, of the interior of sub-Arctic America, having
exceptionally dark mantles, and the latter pinkish under parts. Both
migrate south in winter. _L. philadelphia_, Bonaparte's Gull, of all North
America, which, like its two following congeners, strays to Britain, has
the bill black; _L. melanocephalus_, of the Mediterranean and Black Seas,
has a jet black head, a partly red bill, and nearly white quills; the very
large _L. ichthyaëtus_ ranging from the Black Sea and the Levant to Tibet,
and wintering in Southern Asia, has the bill almost orange. _L. saundersi_,
a slender-legged stout-billed bird, inhabits the rivers and coasts of China
and Mongolia; _L. serranus_ of the Andes from Ecuador to Chili being a near
ally. _L. minutus_, the Little Gull, frequenting marshy districts in
sub-Arctic and temperate {310}Europe and Asia in summer, and reaching the
Mediterranean in winter, is quite the smallest of the genus.
The lovely _Rhodostethia rosea_, or Wedge-tailed Gull, of the North Polar
seas, supposed to breed on islets north of Asia and America if not of Franz
Josef Land, is easily distinguished by its small black bill, red feet,
black collar, and rosy lower parts. One specimen is on record in Britain.
_Xema sabinii_, or Sabine's Gull, which nests on maritime marshes from
Greenland westward to the Taimyr Peninsula, wanders to Britain, France, the
Bermudas, and Texas, and annually visits Peru; it may be recognised by its
plumbeous head, black collar, and forked tail. Of the larger collarless _X.
furcatum_, with a white basal band on the maxilla, the only five examples
known are from the Galápagos and Peru.
Sub-fam. 3. _Rhynchopinae._–Of this group the curiously compressed beak and
the habits have already been described (pp. 301, 304). The sole genus
_Rhynchops_, or Scissor-bill, contains five species, of which _R. nigra_ is
black, with white forehead, cheeks, and lower parts; the wing-quills being
also broadly tipped, and the tail-feathers varied, with white. The bill and
feet are red, with a black end to the former. In winter the nape is whiter,
while the young are buff and blackish above. Breeding from New Jersey to
Florida, this bird strays to New Brunswick and migrates to Trinidad,
occurring also in South-West Mexico. _R. intercedens_ of South Brazil and
Argentina, and the larger _R. melanura_, of the North and West of South
America, have nearly uniform brown rectrices, but the latter has little
white on the secondaries. _R. flavirostris_, extending from Senegal to
Damara-Land, and from Egypt and the Red Sea to Nyassa-Land, has a red and
orange beak; _R. albicollis_, of India and Lower Burma, differs from it in
having the back of the neck white.
Sub-fam. 4. _Sterninae._–The Terns may be commenced with the snow-white
_Gygis candida_, which ranges from the islands east of Brazil to Ascension,
St. Helena, Madagascar and its vicinity, the Indian Ocean, the Malay
countries, Australia, the Ladrones, the Sandwich Islands and Polynesia
generally. The form and habits have been already noticed (pp. 301, 303).
The smaller slender-billed _G. microrhyncha_ seems to be peculiar to the
Marquesas.
_Anous stolidus_, termed with its congeners the "Noddies" from their stolid
indifference at times to man, chiefly frequents tropical and sub-tropical
regions, and has occurred once in Ireland. It is {311}sooty-brown, with
whitish forehead, grey head, black bill and lores, and reddish-brown feet;
_A. galapagensis_ of the Galápagos being entirely sooty-black above. _A.
(Micranous) leucocapillus_, with a weaker bill and a white crown, has a
somewhat more restricted range; _A. (M.) tenuirostris_, with grey lores,
ranges from the neighbourhood of Madagascar to Australia; _A. (M.)
hawaiiensis_, with lighter upper parts, occurs around the Sandwich Islands.
These species make a large flat nest of twigs, leaves, grass, and sea-weed,
on trees, bushes, or even on the ground, laying one buffish-white egg with
scattered red-brown markings. Several pairs often use one tree. _A.
(Procelsterna) cinereus_, extending from Australia to Chili, and _A. (P.)
caeruleus_ of Central Polynesia, are nearly grey above, but the former is
white beneath. The egg is ordinarily deposited with little or no nest on a
bare rock or on sand.
In all the rest of the Sub-family the tail is forked instead of graduated,
though less markedly in _Naenia inca_ of Peru and Chili, which is
leaden-grey, with curling white plumes below the eye, red bill and feet.
The genus _Sterna_ contains the more typical Terns or Sea-Swallows, of
which the coloration–unless subsequently mentioned–is grey above, and white
or lighter grey beneath and on the tail. _S. trudeaui_ of Brazil,
Argentina, and Chili, which strays to the United States, and _S.
melanauchen_, ranging from the Amirante and Seychelles Islands to the Liu
Kiu group and Polynesia, are the only two species with the crown white in
place of black in the breeding season; the former bird has a black streak
through the eye, the latter a band from the lores to the nape.
_S. minuta_, the Lesser Tern, breeds in many parts of Britain, and extends
from about lat. 60° N. in Europe to the Mediterranean, the Caspian, and
North India, migrating to South Africa, Burma, and Java. It has a white
forehead and belly, black lores, orange feet, and yellow bill with black
tip. The two or three whitish or drab eggs, marked with grey and black,
differ strikingly from those of the Common Tern and its allies. The larger
_S. sinensis_ occurs from Bengal and Ceylon to Japan, New Guinea, and
Australia; the greyer-rumped _S. antillarum_, the Least Tern, from northern
South America to California and New England, or exceptionally to Labrador
and West Africa; _S. saundersi_, with nearly black outer primaries, from
East Africa to Burma. _S. superciliaris_, with yellow beak, is peculiar to
eastern South {312}America; _S. lorata_, with grey belly, to Peru and
Chili; _S. nereis_, with white lores, to Australia, New Zealand, and New
Caledonia; _S. balaenarum_, with black forehead and base of bill, to
Southern Africa.
_S. fuliginosa_, _S. anaestheta_, and _S. lunata_ are the Sooty Terns,
so-called from their dark upper surface; the second being browner and the
third greyer than the typical species, wherein alone the young differ from
the adults in having brown lower parts instead of white. The forehead is
white, the bill and feet are black, while immature birds show whitish
markings above. These Terns frequent the tropics, but _S. lunata_ only
occurs from the Moluccas to Laysan, the Sandwich Islands, and elsewhere in
Polynesia. _S. fuliginosa_ has been obtained three times in England,
occasionally on the Continent of Europe, and in America northwards to
Maine. The single egg, like that of the Noddy, but with finer red, grey,
and lilac markings, is laid on sand or flat rocks; descriptions of the
colony, or "Wideawake Fair," on Ascension having been given by several
writers.[201] _S. aleutica_ of Alaska, Bering Sea, and Japan, with a
slate-grey mantle, white forehead and rump, connects the above with the
next section.
The remaining species, with white foreheads, are the large _S. bergii_,
ranging from East and South-West Africa to Japan and Polynesia, excluding
New Zealand, and _S. bernsteini_ of the Seychelles, Rodriguez, Diego
Garcia, and Halmahera, both of which have elongated nape-feathers and a
yellowish bill, but grey and white rumps respectively. _S. frontalis_, of
the New Zealand and Australian Seas, has a black bill.
Of large forms, with black foreheads, black feet, and lengthened nuchal
plumes, _S. cantiaca_, the Sandwich Tern, breeding from Britain and the
Mediterranean to the Caspian, and from New England to Honduras and both
coasts of Guatemala, possesses a black bill. It migrates to Cape Colony,
Sind, and Brazil. The large _S. maxima_, and the similar but smaller _S.
elegans_, have the beak red; the former extending from about lat. 40° N. in
America to Peru and Brazil, and in winter to West Africa; the latter from
California to Chili. _S. eurygnatha_, found from Venezuela to Patagonia,
only differs in its yellow bill; but _S. media_, ranging from the
Mediterranean and East Africa to Australia, has the tail grey instead of
white. In this section the richly marked eggs have often a creamy ground.
{313}[Illustration: FIG. 63.–Common Tern. _Sterna fluviatilis._ × ¼.]
One only of the smaller species allied to the last group has blackish bill
and feet, namely _S. longipennis_,[202] occurring from Lake Baikal and
Ceylon to Kamtschatka, Japan, and New Guinea. Of the remainder the Common,
Arctic, and Roseate Terns breed in Britain, though the Roseate is decidedly
scarce there. _S. fluviatilis_, the Common Tern, occupying the coasts and
inland waters of Europe, temperate Asia, and temperate America–chiefly on
the eastern side in the last case–and migrating to South Africa, India,
Ceylon, and Brazil, has red feet, and red bill with horn-coloured tip, the
lower parts being vinaceous grey. _S. macrura_, the Arctic Tern,
frequenting the northern regions of Europe and America from lat. 82° to
50°, and 42° N. respectively, has the bill entirely red, the metatarsus
comparatively short, and the breast French grey. The two or three
brown-spotted eggs vary from olive to green, and are frequently ruddier
than those of the Common Tern. _S. dougalli_, the Roseate Tern, differing
in the nearly black bill, the white tips to the inner webs of the
primaries, and the evanescent pink tinge on the under parts, is widely
distributed from lat. 57° N. in the Atlantic to New Caledonia, but is
apparently wanting in the Eastern Pacific. Its cry is peculiarly grating.
_S. albigena_, ranging from the Red Sea to the Malabar coast, is much
darker, and has orange feet; while _S. hirundinacea_, extending from Brazil
and Peru to the regions south of Cape Horn, _S. vittata_ of St. Paul's,
Amsterdam, Inaccessible, Tristan da Cunha, and Kerguelen Islands, and _S.
virgata_ of Kerguelen Island and the Crozets are closely allied forms, of
{314}which the last two are said to lay a single egg. _S. albistriata_,
with but slightly elongated outer rectrices, yellow bill and feet, inhabits
New Zealand and strays to Norfolk Island; _S. forsteri_, with white under
parts, orange bill, and reddish feet, inhabits most of North America. _S.
melanogaster_ of India, reaching northwards to Afghanistan and Bhutan, has
a black belly.
Of forms with much stouter bills than _Sterna_, _Seena aurantia_, of India,
the Burmese countries and Yunnan, has the bill and feet orange;
_Hydroprocne caspia_, the Caspian Tern–largest of the Sub-family–has a very
short tail, red bill, and black feet. The latter occupies most of the
world, except tropical South America and the Pacific Islands, visiting
Britain, and breeding as near to it as Sylt. _Gelochelidon anglica_, the
Gull-billed Tern, with a long metatarsus, reddish-black beak and feet,
occurs in Britain and is found through the temperate and tropical parts of
the Old and New Worlds, but not in South Africa, and rarely in Western
America. _Phaëthusa magnirostris_, of the warmer portions of North America,
has a short tail, yellow bill, and olive-yellow feet.
The genus _Hydrochelidon_, or Marsh Tern, is distinguished by a short tail,
a comparatively small bill, and feet with much indented webs. The note is
shrill; the food consists of aquatic insects, varied by frogs, newts, and
small fish: the nests, placed in close proximity on swamps or pools, are
formed of water plants and are sometimes mere floating masses of them; the
three eggs are often very dark olive or brown. _H. nigra_, the Black Tern
or Blue Darr, ranges from Europe south of lat. 60° N. and the Mediterranean
to Turkestan, wintering as far as Loango and Abyssinia. It bred in the east
of England up to 1858, since which date a nest is quite exceptional, while
its two congeners are only chance visitors. The colour is lead-grey, with
blacker head, black bill and reddish-brown feet. The darker race _H.
surinamensis_ inhabits temperate America from Alaska and Canada southwards,
migrating to Chili and Brazil. _H. leucoptera_, the White-winged Black
Tern, is found in Central and Southern Europe, temperate Asia and North
Africa; reaching accidentally to America, and in winter from Cape Colony to
Australia and New Zealand. It is chiefly black, with white carpal region,
rump, tail, and vent, the bill and feet being red. _H. hybrida_, the
Whiskered Tern, has a similar range, but breeds also from India to
Australia. The main colour is slate-grey, the head and nape being black,
the bill {315}and feet red, and a white streak marking each cheek. In the
winter and immature plumage the under parts are entirely, and the head
partially white, throughout the genus.
Of fossil Laridae _Halcyornis_ occurs in the Lower Eocene of England,
_Aegialornis_[203] in the Upper Eocene of France; while the Lower Miocene
of the latter country, the Middle Miocene of Germany, and the Pliocene of
Oregon furnish _Larus_.
Fam. VIII. ALCIDAE.–The Sub-order ALCAE contains only this Family, or the
Auks, wherein the body is heavy and compact, the head large, the plumage
close and elastic. The stout bill varies extraordinarily, as will be seen
under the various species. The abbreviated metatarsus is reticulated,
usually with a row of scutellae in front; the long anterior toes are fully
webbed, the hallux is absent or rudimentary, the claws are stout, acute,
and slightly curved. The wings are very short, and the Great Auk was
absolutely flightless; but most species fly strongly and rapidly to varying
distances, the pinions not being flipper-like as in the Penguins, to which
these birds have no affinity; like them, however, they commonly sit upright
upon the metatarsus, and walk awkwardly from the feet being placed so far
back, while they swim and dive to perfection. The primaries are eleven, the
secondaries from fifteen to nineteen. The short tail may be rounded as in
_Uria_, or graduated with pointed rectrices as in _Alca_; the quills
numbering twelve, except in _A. impennis_, which has eighteen. The furcula
is U-shaped, the syrinx tracheo-bronchial, the tongue lanceolate; the
nostrils–covered with feathers in _Alca_, _Uria_ and _Mergulus_, and with a
horny membrane elsewhere–are pervious. An aftershaft is present, and down
is plentiful on both adults and nestlings, being in the latter fluffy, and
of a black, grey, or brown colour, sometimes relieved by white. Elongated
feathers, crests, and horny outgrowths are common, as described below.
Auks are entirely pelagic birds, breeding from the Polar Seas southwards to
Japan, Lower California, Maine, and the Berlengas off the Tagus, while
wandering further in winter; but the North Pacific may certainly be
considered their headquarters. In the case of the British species a small
proportion remain near shore after the autumn, but it seems to be quite
uncertain where the majority spend the colder months. The members of this
Family can hardly be called gregarious, except in the breeding time,
{316}when vast flocks arrive with great regularity, or even to an exact
day. In England this occurs at the end of March or beginning of April, the
latter part of August or the first week of September being as punctually
observed for departure. Except for purposes of procreation, or during
violent storms, individuals are rarely seen on land, as might be expected
from the clumsy style of gait; yet Puffins and Black Guillemots are fairly
good walkers, and the former fly particularly straight and swiftly. Auks
either splash along the surface of the waves before diving, or plunge
suddenly, and when immersed use their wings much as if flying. The usual
voice is a harsh-toned croak or grunt, but in addition _Simorhynchus_ is
said to chatter, _Cyclorhynchus_ to whistle; _Ptychorhamphus_ utters a
musical ringing sound, the Little Auk a wild cry, and Black Guillemots a
shrill, plaintive note. Fish, crustaceans, worms, and the like, with chance
ship-refuse, compose the diet; the birds frequently disgorging it when
scared, and sometimes in order to feed the young.
The great pear-shaped egg of the Guillemots proper, and the more oval one
of the Razorbill, is deposited on some bare ledge of a cliff, on a stack,
or on an island rock. In the case of the latter bird the egg is usually in
a crevice, being white or buff with black or brown markings, and generally,
if not invariably, green inside. Guillemots' eggs vary from white or buff
to brilliant green or blue, and are spotted, streaked, or covered with
intricate wavy patterns of black, brown, or rufous; the same bird probably
always producing similar specimens. The Black Guillemots lay two
greenish-white eggs with blotches of brown, rust-colour, and grey, under
close-packed boulders or in holes low down in cliffs; that of the Little
Auk is pale bluish-green, with or without faint rufous stains, and is found
in similar, but commonly much higher, situations; _Synthliborhamphus_ and
various other forms use burrows in the turf, like Petrels, as an
alternative to chinks in rocks; but the first-named produces two buff eggs,
spotted with brown and grey, while the remainder lay only one, which is
either white, or very indistinctly marked. Of these, Puffins fashion a
considerable nest of dry materials. In some instances at least, both sexes
incubate, the period being nearly five weeks. When hatched in holes the
young remain there for a considerable time, otherwise they are soon
assisted by their parents to reach the sea. Where unmolested, Auks are
sufficiently tame; Puffins, {317}Razorbills, and so forth, however, bite
severely if handled, and the first-named will fight with each other to the
death.
As will be seen, the colour of both sexes in summer is black or dusky,
varied by white, and occasionally brown; the winter plumage being duller
and less decorative, and resembling the garb of the young. The size varies
from that of the Great Auk to that of the Least or Knob-billed Auklet, the
Family being confined to the Palaearctic and Nearctic Regions.
_Lunda cirrata_, the Tufted Puffin, ranging from South California to Japan,
and straying to Eastern America, is sooty above and greyish below; the
sides of the head being white anteriorly, a "rosette" of naked red skin
adorning the gape, and a nuptial tuft of long straw-coloured feathers
hanging from above each eye. The feet are red, and become flesh-coloured in
winter. The highly compressed bill is red in front and yellowish behind;
while its base consists of three portions, separated from each other and
from the transversely grooved fore-part by furrows, which deepen until the
pieces become detached and expose a soft brownish skin, that hardens again
towards spring. _Fratercula arctica_, the Puffin, occupies in vast numbers
many of the precipitous coasts and islands of Britain, laying its large,
dull white, granulated egg–faintly marked with brown and speedily
begrimed–in a rock-crevice, or a burrow, often made by the bird itself. The
upper parts and gorget are black, the cheeks greyish, the lower surface
white, the rosettes yellow, and the feet orange-red. The base of the huge
compressed and grooved bill, blue, yellow, and red in colour, is shed in
nine pieces towards winter, when the cheeks become white, the rosettes
reddish, and a blunt, fleshy, horn-like appendage on the upper eyelid also
disappears. This species breeds northwards in the Atlantic, from the Bay of
Fundy and the Berlengas off the Tagus, and (as the larger form _F.
glacialis_) eastwards to Novaya Zemlya, migrating a little further south:
in the Pacific, _F. corniculata_, with longer horns and more developed
deciduous bill-sheath, takes its place.
_Cerorhyncha monocerata_, the Rhinoceros Auklet of the North Pacific and
western North America, has a stout, curved orange and black bill, with a
large compressed horn between the nostrils, and an accessory piece on the
mandible; the upper parts are dusky, the lower whitish with plumbeous
cheeks and throat, while a row of narrow white feathers decorates each side
of the {318}head. In winter the horny processes disappear, but not the
plumes. _Ptychorhamphus aleuticus_, Cassin's Auklet, of the Pacific coast
of North America, is black above and white below, with a lead-coloured
throat, a white iris, and a bill which is mainly black, and becomes
wrinkled in summer. _Cyclorhynchus psittaculus_, the Parrot Auk of the
North Pacific, has an extraordinary compressed orange-red beak, to which
the blunt decurved maxilla and narrow up-curved mandible give a rounded
appearance; the upper parts and the throat are dusky; the lower surface,
the iris, and a row of filaments behind each eye are white, as is the
throat in winter. Three species of _Simorhynchus_, from the North Pacific,
have a stout orange-red or purplish bill, a white iris, and black upper
parts. _S. cristatellus_, the Crested Auklet, has several deciduous plates
at the base of the beak, including a round piece at each side of the gape;
the lower parts are grey; a tuft of dusky plumes curls over the forehead,
and a line of narrow white feathers stretches across the ear-coverts–both
being permanent: in winter the bill is horn-coloured. _S. pygmaeus_, the
Whiskered Auklet, is without conspicuously deciduous plates, but has an
additional patch of white plumes, reaching from the beak above and below
the eye at all seasons. _S. pusillus_, the Least Auklet, has on the short
maxilla a small compressed basal tubercle, which is shed in winter, but
exhibits no crest. The scapular region shews a good deal of white;
filamentous white feathers grace the forehead, lores, and ear-coverts; and
dusky spots mark the lower parts, in summer only. _Synthliborhamphus
antiquus_, of the Pacific north of Vancouver Island and Japan, but
accidental elsewhere, has a short, compressed, yellow and black beak, with
plumbeous upper and white lower parts; the head and throat are black with a
white line on each side of the occiput, the upper back is streaked with
white. In winter all the stripes vanish, and the throat is white. _S.
wumizusume_, of the Eastern Asiatic seas southward to Japan, has a nuptial
crest of long narrow plumes, but no streaks on the back. In the cold season
the whole malar region and throat are white. _Brachyrhamphus marmoratus_ of
the North Pacific, reaching California in winter, has a small slender black
bill, dusky upper parts barred with rufous, and white under parts varied
with brown; _B. kittlitzi_, of the Aleutian Islands east to Unalashka,
Kamtschatka, and North Japan, is thickly {319}spotted with buff above; _B.
hypoleucus_ and _B. craveri_ of Lower California are plain slate-coloured
with white lower surface, the former having white and the latter grey
wing-lining. The first two species have a white nuchal collar and irregular
white markings above in winter, with nearly white lower parts.
_Cepphus grylle_, the Black Guillemot of the Atlantic northwards from
Britain and Maine, and of the Arctic coasts of Europe, is black with a
white wing-patch, the feathers of which are black at the base; in winter
the plumage is white, relieved above and sometimes below by black, and the
red feet become pinkish. The compressed pointed bill is always black. _C.
mandti_, occupying, as it seems, the North Polar seas generally, and
breeding as far south as Labrador, has a more slender bill, and no black
wing-patch. _C. columba_, ranging from Bering Strait and Japan to
California, has a large wedge-shaped black mark on the white wing-patch;
_C. carbo_, of North-East Asia, Japan, the Kuril and Bering Islands, shews
no white except round the eye. All these forms wander southwards in winter.
The Black Guillemot or Tystie still breeds in the Isle of Man, and sparsely
on the East of Scotland and Ireland, in the north and west of which
countries it is not uncommon. It is remarkably tame when it breeds in the
wilder districts, uttering a plaintive cry, and making its way to land in
the face of an intruder. The two whitish or greenish eggs, beautifully
spotted with black, brown, and grey, are deposited among large boulders, or
in holes at the bases of cliffs, without any nest.