Part 42

"Adult female in breeding plumage.--Above, not so strongly mottled with black as the male, and consequently rather browner, especially on the head; black of face and under parts not so much developed, these parts being mottled with irregular black markings. Length, 279; culmen, 33; wing, 203; tail, 74; tarsus, 46.

"Adult in winter plumage.--Differs from the summer plumage chiefly in wanting the black on face and breast, but, from the absence of black mottling on the back, the whole upper surface appears more uniform, being ashy brown with narrow whitish edgings to the feathers, before which is a blackish subterminal shade; lores white, but base of forehead like crown; a line of white above and below eye, but the white eyebrow scarcely visible above the ear-coverts, which are dingy blackish; sides of face white, streaked with dusky; throat and under parts pure white, lower throat and fore neck pale ashy brown, slightly mottled with dusky markings; under wing-coverts white, except the lower primary-coverts, which are dusky ashy; axillars black.

"Young.--Like the winter plumage of the adults, and always to be distinguished from the golden plover by the black axillars, though it is spangled with golden buff on the upper surface, as is the latter species." (Sharpe.)

The gray plover, known as the black-bellied plover in the United States, is found along the seashore in small numbers during the winter months. As seen in the Philippines it is usually in the gray plumage but as with its very near relative, the golden plover, individuals having the breast mottled with black are not uncommon.

Genus CHARADRIUS Linnæus, 1758.

This genus differs from Squatarola in being smaller and in lacking the hind-toe.

91. CHARADRIUS FULVUS Gmelin.

PACIFIC GOLDEN PLOVER.

Charadrius fulvus Gmelin, Syst. Nat. (1788), 1, 167; Oates, Bds. Brit. Burmah (1883), 2, 364; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 22. Charadrius dominicus Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1896), 24, 195 (part); Hand-List (1899), 1, 152 (part); Oates, Cat. Birds' Eggs (1902), 2, 18 (part).

Ca-sa-huit', Calayan; ma-tang-vá-ca, Manila.

Balabac (Steere, Steere Exp.); Bantayan (McGregor); Basilan (McGregor); Batan (McGregor); Bohol (Everett); Calamianes (Bourns & Worcester); Calayan (McGregor); Cebu (Everett, McGregor); Cuyo (McGregor); Fuga (McGregor); Leyte (Everett); Lubang (McGregor); Luzon (Cuming, Meyer, Everett, Heriot, Whitehead, McGregor); Masbate (Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Mindanao (Murray, Everett, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Celestino); Mindoro (McGregor); Negros (Layard, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Keay); Palawan (Platen, Whitehead, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, White); Sibay (McGregor & Worcester); Sibuyan (Bourns & Worcester); Siquijor (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Celestino); Sulu (Mearns); Ticao (McGregor). Northern Asia and Alaskan coasts of Bering Sea, south in winter to Australia and Polynesia.

"Male and female in summer.--Forehead white, continued back over each eye as a broad supercilium and extending down the sides of neck; whole upper plumage black, each feather with large marginal yellow spots on both webs, the spots on the wing-coverts tending to white; primary-coverts and the greater series brown, tipped and margined with white; primaries brown, the central portion of the shaft whitish; secondaries brown tipped with whitish; tail blackish, irregularly barred with white; chin, throat, fore neck, breast, and abdomen black; vent and flanks black mottled with white; under tail-coverts white; axillars smoky brown with white tips.

"Male and female in winter.--Upper plumage black, the feathers margined with yellow; wing-coverts margined with dull white; quills and tail much as in summer; forehead and sides of head fulvous, the latter part streaked with brown; chin and upper throat fulvous-white; lower throat, fore neck, and feathers under cheeks and ear-coverts rather bright fulvous with minute streaks of brown; breast grayish, the feathers broadly margined with fulvous; remainder of lower plumage pale buffy white; sides of body more or less marked and fringed with fulvous; axillars smoky brown, tipped with white as in summer. Bill dark brown; iris dark hazel-brown; legs plumbeous; claws horn-color. Length, 254; tail, 63; wing, 160; tarsus, 46; bill from gape, 28. The sexes are of about the same size.

"The golden plover frequents waste ground, grassy plains, and wet paddy-fields, and also the edges of rivers, and is generally met with in flocks of considerable size. It breeds in China, and also it is said in some parts of India, laying four eggs in a hollow lined with a few blades of grass. The eggs are yellowish blotched with blackish sepia." (Oates.)

The Eastern golden plover is found in the Philippines on migration and is then usually in its gray winter dress but specimens have been taken with numbers of black feathers from the summer plumage.

Genus OCHTHODROMUS Reichenbach, 1852.

This genus should be united to Ægialitis from which its members differ only in being a little larger.

Species.

a1. Axillars and under wing-coverts white; wing about 140 mm.

b1. Larger; culmen more than 23 mm. ... geoffroyi (p. 106) b2. Smaller; culmen less than 20 mm. ... mongolus (p. 107)

a2. Axillars and under wing-coverts smoky brown; wing about 165 mm. ... veredus (p. 108)

92. OCHTHODROMUS GEOFFROYI (Wagler).

LARGER SAND PLOVER.

Charadrius geoffroyi Wagler, Syst. Av. (1827), 61. Ochthodromus geoffroyi Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1896), 24, 217; Hand-List (1899), 1, 153; Oates, Cat. Birds' Eggs (1902), 2, 20; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 23.

Ma-tang va-ca de collar, general name for small plovers.

Bantayan (McGregor); Batan (McGregor); Bohol (Everett, McGregor); Cagayancillo (McGregor); Cebu (McGregor); Cuyo (McGregor); Leyte (Everett); Lubang (McGregor); Luzon (Whitehead, McGregor); Negros (Everett, Bourns & Worcester); Mindanao (Mearns); Mindoro (McGregor, Porter); Palawan (Everett, Lempriere, Platen, Whitehead, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, White); Panay (Steere Exp.); Pata (Mearns); Siquijor (Bourns & Worcester). Japan, Formosa, and Hainan, south in winter to Africa, India, and Australia.

"Adult in breeding plumage.--Above light brown, with a slight olive-greenish gloss, wing-coverts like the back, with obsolete indications of paler fringes to some of the feathers, greater series tipped with white, forming a narrow wing-bar; alula, primary-coverts, and quills brown, primaries darker brown along their outer webs and at tips, shafts white; inner primaries with a white mark toward the base of outer web; secondaries brown, with white fringes to the end of outer web and white tips, shafts white, with a little extension along the sides of the shaft in the inner secondaries; innermost long secondaries like back, outer ones white along their outer web; rump and upper tail-coverts a little lighter and more ashy brown than the back, with white fringes to most of the feathers; sides of rump white; tail ashy brown with a broad white tip, a subterminal shade of darker brown, forming an obsolete, subterminal band; outer feathers with more or less white near base of inner web, outermost one almost entirely white, except for a slight shade of smoky brown and a slightly indicated subterminal shade of darker brown; hinder crown light brown, entirely surrounded by pale cinnamon-rufous, which occupies fore part of crown and extends down sides of neck round hinder neck, where it forms a broad collar of pale cinnamon-rufous; base of forehead white, followed by a narrow black band; lores black; feathers in front of and below the eye black; which unite with a black band along top of ear-coverts; sides of face and under surface of body white; across fore neck and chest a broad band of cinnamon-rufous or light chestnut, which extends a little way down the sides of upper breast; under wing-coverts, axillars, and quill-lining white. Length, 215; culmen, 25; wing, 140; tail, 51; tarsus, 37.

"Adult in winter plumage.--Differs from the summer plumage in wanting the rufous chest and in the absence of all facial markings. Above uniform brown, head like the back, hind neck paler and more ashy brown; lores, forehead, eyelid, and a broad eyebrow white; feathers below eye brown extending in a streak along ear-coverts; cheeks and entire under surface white, with a patch of brown on each side of upper breast. 'Bill black; tarsus greenish gray or pale olive; toes dusky or blackish; iris brown.' (Hume.)