364 



SCOLOPAX MAJOR. GREAT SNIPE. 



SOLITARY SNIPE. WOODCOCK SNIPE. DOUBLE SNIPE. 



Scolopax major. Gmel. Syst. Nat. I. 661. 



Scolopax major. Lath. Ind. Ornith. II. 714. 



Great Snipe. Mont. Ornith. Diet, and Supplt. 



Grande ou Double Becassine. Scolopax major. Temm. Man. d'Omith. II 



675. 

 Scolopax major. Great Snipe. Flem. Brit. Anim. 105. 

 Great Snipe. Scolopax major. Selby, Illustr. II. 115. 

 Scolopax major. Great Snipe. Jenyns, Brit. Vert. Anim. 205. 

 Gallinago Montagui. Bonap. Comp. List. 52. 



Tail rounded, of sixteen feathers ; bill twice the length of 

 the head; two longitudinal black bands on the head separated 

 by a narrower medial reddish-white band, and on each side a 

 yelloicish- white band; the upper parts variegated with black 

 and light red, with four longitudinal yelloicish white bands; 

 wing-coverts tipped with white; three lateral tail-feathers on 

 each side white; sides transversely barred with dusky; axillar 

 feathers white, barred with greyish-black. 



Male. — This species is considerably larger than our 

 common Snipe, which it, however, so closely resembles, that 

 one might readily mistake a specimen of it for a large indi- 

 vidual of that species. The body is ovate, compact, and 

 rather full ; the neck of moderate length ; the head small, 

 oblong, compressed, much rounded above. The bill is nearly 

 twice the length of the head, slender, straight, compressed 

 until near the end, where it is depressed ; the upper man- 

 dible with the ridge narrow but rounded, tow r ard the end 

 sulcate, the lateral grooves extending nearly to the end, the 

 edges rather sharp, the tip blunt ; the lower mandible with 

 the angle extremely long and continued into a groove, which 



