Dec. ], 1869.] 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



275 



undulating jerky flight, uttering as he went his 

 ringing tinkling notes. 



We have heard an old sportsman say that, more than 

 forty years ago,when searching these fens for the large 

 Copper Butterfly {Polyommatus dispar) and other rare 

 insects, he frequently saw the nests and eggs of all 

 these birds ; and the children of the fen-men used to 

 bring him in hsitfuls of eggs of the Harriers, Short- 

 eared Owl, Great Crested Grebe, Black-tailed God- 

 wit, and Spotted Crake. Eancy, buying a hatful of 

 Spotted Crake's eggs for sixpence, or half a dozen 

 fresh Bittern's eggs for a shilling ! What rare days for 

 the ornithologist ! But they are passed away ! The 

 great fens are drained, and have almost ceased to 

 deserve the name. The beautiful birds which once 

 haunted them, finding no longer the same retirement 

 and opportunities for nesting, have disappeared. 

 Some, as residents, are now extinct, and we see 

 them only at particular seasons of the year, when, 

 as if to try another chance of nesting here, they re- 

 visit the old country, and — are shot and chronicled 

 as rare ! 



We might allude to the Spoonbill and Avocet, 

 which formerly bred in our fens, and to one or two 

 other species which are now only occasional visitants 

 where once they were plentiful * But we will con- 

 fine our attention for the present to one bird in par- 

 ticular, which may be now almost placed in the 

 same catalogue— the Ruff, and his mate, the Reeve. 

 A most singular bird this is. Belonging to the 

 same great group which comprises the Snipes and 

 Sandpipers (Scolopax, Tringa, and Totamts), it differs 

 remarkably from them all in many respects. Old 

 naturalists placed it among the Tringce, but as the 

 species became better known, it was found that, un- 

 like any other wading bird, the males were poly- 

 gamous, and fought for possession of the females ; 

 differed from each other in colour ; were a third 

 larger than their mates ; and during the breeding 

 season put forth a curious frill of feathers on the 

 neck, which disappeared in autumn when the sexes 

 separated. These facts led naturalists to consider 

 the bird genetically distinct from those above named, 

 and it is now generally placed in the genus Machetes, 

 which Cuvier, in 1817, proposed for it. 



By far the most complete account which has been 

 given of the Ruff and Reeve is that which was 

 published by Montagu, in 1813, in the supplement 

 to bis "Ornithological Dictionary." This dis- 

 tinguished naturalist travelled from Devonshire into 

 Lincolnshire— a long journey in those days— with the 

 sole object of studying these birds in their native 

 fens, and of ascertaining more than was then 



* Sir Thomas Browne, writing two centuries ago, remarked 

 that the Spoonbill then nested in Norfolk and Suffolk (see 

 his Works, Wilkin's Ed., iv., p. 315). The last eggs of the 

 Avocet which are recorded to have been taken in England, 

 were obtained fire-and-twenty years ago at the mouth of the 

 Humber. 



known of their habits and curious change of plu- 

 mage. He experienced the greatest difficulty in 

 discovering the haunts of these birds, for the fen- 

 men, who made a trade of snaring them for the 

 table, refused to give him any information on the 

 subject, fearing lest their trade might be interfered 

 with. He attained his object, nevertheless, and 

 carried back with him several live Ruffs to Devon- 

 shire. These he kept in confinement for a few years, 

 and carefully noted all the changes of plumage 

 which they underwent, and the peculiarities of 

 habit which they displayed. His interesting re- 

 marks on the subject should be read in extenso by 

 every naturalist. 



The male birds, as the name Machetes implies, are 

 extremely pugnacious, and this is especially the 

 case at the commencement of the breeding season 

 when the birds are pairing. Two Rufl's will then 

 contend for the possession of a Reeve, and with 

 heads lowered, frill distended, and wings trailing 

 the 'ground, they rush at one another again and 

 again, like game-cocks, leaping and striking with 

 the bill, until one or other is forced to yield. Having 

 paired and selected a spot for the nest, they build 

 not unlike a Snipe, and in much the same situations, 

 generally choosing the middle of a tussock or clump 

 of sedge. Here they lay four eggs of an oil-greeu 

 colour, blotched chiefly at the larger end, with liver 

 brown. In size and shape the eggs are equal to 

 those of the Redshank, but may be distinguished as 

 follows : the Redshank's egg looks as if it were 

 painted in water-colour, has a lighter ground-colour, 

 and smaller markings on it. The Reeve's egg has a 

 more oily look and feel, the texture is smoother, 

 the ground-colour generally greener, and the blotches 

 thereon larger. 



It is a remarkable thing that we seldom see two 

 Ruffs of the same colour ; the variety is surprising. 

 As a rule, the male bird renews the same coloured 

 frill in each succeeding year. This has been proved 

 repeatedly by marking buds in confinement and 

 noting their changes of plumage ; but it has occa- 

 sionally happened that a Ruff which had a light 

 frill one year, assumed one of a darker shade the 

 succeeding spring. The frill begins to make its 

 appearance in April, and before the end of July it 

 has almost disappeared. This bird appears to have 

 a wide geographical range. We have specimens in 

 our collection from Southern Russia, Nubia, and the 

 Cape of Good Hope. Great numbers are imported 

 every spring from Holland, and may be seen in most 

 of the poulterers' stalls, especially in Leadenhall 

 market. They are considered great delicacies for 

 the table, and generally fetch from fifteen to eighteen 

 pence a piece. 



At that season of the year the Ruff and Reeve 

 are now seldom met with in England, for, as we 

 have observed, their breeding haunts have been al- 

 most destroyed. Mr. Stevenson says that in East 



