92 
The Birds of Pembrokeshire. 
and weight, and we believe these very small-sized birds to be 
merely the young birds of the year, and the offspring, probably, 
of small birds. We invariably found the labourers, and farm 
people in general, when we were out shooting, eager to give us in- 
formation respecting any “‘ cyffylog,” or Woodcock, they had seen ; 
it was evidently in their opinion, ¢4e sportsman’s bird, and in 
comparison they attached but small importance to the “ Ze?- 
vusen,” the Partridges, or to the “ faysants ;”” next to the Wood- 
cock a hare, doubtless because of its extreme rarity, the 
“‘ yseyfarnog,” was considered worthy of being reported. As is 
well known, Woodcocks gladly avail themselves of any holly 
bushes in the covers, because of the dry and warm shelter 
afforded by their thick leaves. If, as a holly bush is approached, 
the ground beneath it is carefully scrutinised, the bird may 
sometimes be seen squatting, and we have frequently succeeded 
in espying one. We remember being present at a shoot at 
which, at the end of the day, four Cocks were found to be in- 
cluded in the bag, all four having been potted on the ground 
beneath the shelter of holly-bushes. 
GREAT SNIPE, Galinago major.—A winter visitor, rare. The 
Great Snipe never occurred to us in Pembrokeshire; it is at 
all times very rare in the south-west of the kingdom. Mr. 
Mathias includes it in his list. Mr. Tracy says: ‘‘The Great 
Snipe has, in several instances, been killed in this county ;” 
but he does not furnish localities and dates. We know of 
no recent occurrence. 
COMMON SNIPE, Gallinago celestis. — Resident; numerous 
arrivals from the northin the autumn and winter. The Common 
Snipe, like the Woodcock, is far less plentiful in the county than 
it used to be. We have heard old sportsmen speak of the great 
bags it was possible to make fifty or sixty years ago, not to be 
accomplished anywhere now. Our old friend, the late Mr. John 
Stokes, of Cuffern, once got between sixty and seventy couple in 
a day and a half on the moors in the neighbourhood of the 
