WOODCOCK. 289 



In 1853, three eggs (wliich liad been incubated about 

 half their time) were found on the 14th of April, in the 

 Mill Carr, near Buckenham House, then the property of 

 the Hon. F. Baring (subsequently Lord Ashburton) and 

 brought to Mr. Alfred Newton. These were small 

 and rather singularly marked examples, as may be seen 

 by the representation of one of them in the last edition 

 of Mr. Hewitson's work (pi. xcvi., fig. 1.) On the 6th 

 of May, of the same year, two young birds in the 

 down, were taken from a nest at Cossey. These pretty 

 little creatures were kept alive for some weeks in a 

 patent hydro-incubator at that time exhibiting in 

 Norwich, and appeared to thrive well in its artificial 

 warmth, but were afterwards killed for stuffing, when 

 sufficiently fledged. A few days later a nest of four 

 eggs, richly blotched with brown, was found at Swafield. 

 Three of these passed into the possession of Mr. J. H. 

 Gurney, and one is now in my own collection. One or 

 two nests were, I believe, also found about the same 

 time at Holkham. 



In 1854 several woodcocks were seen at Ranworth as 

 late as the 26th of April, but no nest was found in that 

 neighbourhood, and in 1859 a single bird was flushed on 

 the 10th of May, in a plantation at Spixworth, but was 

 not observed there afterwards. On the 28th of April, 

 however, of the latter year, a nest was found in a valley 

 planted with birch and oak, near the Beeston hills, 

 about two hundred yards from " Larry's cottage," a weU 

 known locahty in the vicinity of Cromer.'^ The bird was 

 flushed by a boy passing near, who at once detected the 

 nest on the ground, covered vdth seared leaves and 

 dried ferns. It contained four eggs, two of which were 

 hatched on the 19th of May, the other two being left 



* The same, I have no doubt, recorded in the " Zoologist " for 

 1859 (p. 6562.) 

 2 p 



