270 THE NESTS AND EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



is usually well concealed, and always made upon the 

 ground, often under the shelter of an arched tuft of 

 grass or other herbage, in the centre of a hummock of 

 rushes, or beneath a little bush of heath or a tall weed. 

 The selected site is merely trampled into a slight hollow, 

 and sparingly lined with a few bits of dead vegetation, 

 and often this small provision even is omitted. The 

 bird sits lightly, and when disturbed from the nest often 

 (in company with its mate) becomes very noisy, career- 

 ing wildly about, or even engages in various alluring 

 actions to decoy an intruder away. 



Range of egg colouration and measurement : 

 The eggs of the Redshank are four in number, and 

 pyriform in shape. They vary from pale buff to dark 

 buff in ground colour, handsomely and boldly blotched 

 and spotted with rich dark brown, and with underlying 

 markings of paler brown and gray. Occasionally a few 

 nearly black streaks occur on the larger end of the ^gg, 

 where, as a rule, most of the blotches are also displayed. 

 Average measurement, 175 inch in length, by i"2 inch 

 in breadth. Incubation, chiefly performed by the 

 female, lasts about twenty-three days. 



Diagnostic characters : The buff ground and 

 large and bold markings distinguish the eggs of the 

 Redshank from those of all other species breeding in 

 our islands with which they are likely to be confused. 



