The Dotterel — Eudromias Morinellus (Linnæus)
A lonely, bleak and bare wind-swept moorland, where the scanty herbage is kept short by the elements and the wandering flocks of mountain sheep; and where the sounds of nature are supplied on most days by the wind as it rushes down the valleys between the rounded hill-tops, to the accompaniment perhaps of the Curlew’s wild whistle, or where on the few calm days in summer a deathly silence prevails, broken only by the humming of a bee as it visits the purple heather, or the clear “go back, go back” of the male Grouse. In such a spot one may hear a low monotonous whistle, or have one’s attention attracted by a small flock of rapidly flying birds skirting the crest of the hill; these are Dotterel, and this is their summer home. This bird is extremely, one might almost say foolishly, tame, though often owing to this tameness it will escape observation, for, instead of taking wing as we approach, it will either stand motionless, or running to the far side of some patch of heather remain unseen, as its colours harmonise so well with the surrounding heather.
The nest is a mere scrape in a bare spot, and hardly any materials are brought together, though a few bits of moss and lichen may be arranged round the eggs. These are three in number and are greenish in colour, very boldly blotched and marked with brown. Both sexes perform the duties of incubation and attend to the wants of the young when hatched.
In this country this species is only a migrant, and in September leaves the hill-tops, and passing through the lower lying counties of England wings its way to other climes.
The sexes are alike and are sandy brown on the back, with longitudinal fulvous markings; there is a white stripe over the eye. Chin white; breast ash brown, bordered with a narrow white transverse band; lower breast chestnut; belly black. In winter the under parts are pale ash brown. The young have rufous edgings to the feathers of the back, but otherwise resemble their parents in winter dress. Length 9 in.; wing 6 in.