434 HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS 



WILSON'S SNIPE. Gallinago wilsoni, Temminck. 

 Length, 10*7 in.: bill, 2'4 in.; wing, 5 in.; tarsus, 

 1-25 in. 



Hah. North America, going south in winter to the 

 Bermudas, West Indies, Colombia, and Brazil. 



One, Taplow, Bucks, Aug. 1, 1863. Forwarded in the 

 flesh for identification to Mr. Gould, in whose posses- 

 sion I had an opportunity of examining it. See Zool., 

 1872, p. 3273. 



Obs. Although this specimen had but fourteen 

 feathers in the tail, like our Common Snipe, instead 

 of sixteen, which is the usual number in G. ivilsoni, 

 the general character of the plumage, and particu- 

 larly the colour of the axillary plumes (which are 

 closely barred across both webs) showed that it was 

 referable to the American, and not to the European 

 species. It might have lost the outer tail-feather on 

 each side, or may never have possessed more than 

 fourteen ; for it appears that in some species of Snipe 

 the number of tail-feathers is not constant. A Snipe 

 forwarded to Gould by Mr. Rodd of Penzance, 

 possessing sixteen feathers in the tail, was thought, 

 chiefly on that account, to be G. wilso7ii; but in no 

 other respect did it diff'er from our Common Snipe. 

 Another specimen with sixteen feathers in the tail 

 was sent from Ireland to Sir William Jardine, and 

 is mentioned by Thompson in the Appendix to his 

 third volume, p. 447. 



