_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.