Habits and Habitat of Snipe. 1 49 



or the food that the spot afforded him. As 

 with all wild creatures, the search for these 

 two conditions is the aim and object of the 

 bird's existence. On the success or failure 

 of its quest, therefore, depends the success 

 or failure of the shooter's sport. 



If a bit of marshland, desirable in every 

 way to the human eye, is lacking in one of 

 these essentials, the snipe will only patronise 

 it for the single necessity it supplies. If it 

 lacks both, they will not patronise it at all, 

 any more than you would go into a shop 

 which contains nothing that you want to buy. 

 The whole question of where to seek the 

 birds reduces itself to the ancient one of 

 supply and demand, so that the indignant 

 astonishment often heard from unthinking 

 sportsmen who have plunged all day for 

 nothing through what they consider a simply 

 ideal snipe-bog is as foolish as it is ignorant. 

 You may be quite certain that if there are 

 any snipe in the vicinity at all, which is 

 another consideration altogether, they have 

 assuredly made a visit of Inspection to the 



