344 CHARADRIITDZ 
Food.—Small crabs, shrimps, sand-hoppers, sea-worms, 
and shell-fish, are sought for along the coast, while at the 
breeding-haunts berries, insects, and earth-worms, form the 
main diet. 
Nest.—The Redshank breeds on the ground in marshy 
situations, the majority of the birds resorting to inland dis- 
tricts far from the coast, while others nest close to the sea- 
beach where marshes and dykes contain brackish waters. A 
spot fairly rich in grasses, rushes, and coarse vegetation, tall 
enough to afford concealment to the sitting- -bird, 1S usually 
selected. I have generally found the nest in the middle 
of a tuft of long grass and often on the islands of fresh- 
water lakes. It is made of dry grass, the same material 
being used for the lining. Sometimes, however, in a secure 
and isolated spot, the surrounding herbage is so stunted that 
the nest is quite open to view. Several pairs of birds may 
be found breeding about the same locality, yet hardly close 
enough and in sufficient numbers to form colonies. The 
eggs, “four in number, are of a warm buff or stone-colour, 
marked with numerous blotches and spots of a rich dark, 
reddish-brown. Some eggs beara close resemblance to those 
of the Lapwing, others are coloured not unlike those of the 
Common Tern, but the ground-colour of the Redshank’s 
egg is usually lighter and clearer than either, and its pear- 
shape at once distinguishes it from the latter. 
Incubation commences about the middle of April, this 
species breeding somewhat earlier than most wading-birds. 
At the approach of an intruder the birds become noisy 
and wildly excited, endeavouring to distract attention from 
their brood by their erratic ascending and descending move- 
ments through the air. 
The Redshank breeds in several counties in England, 
also in Wales, while in Scotland and Ireland it is more 
widely distributed as a nesting-species, and in a few 
favourite breeding-haunts 1s even numerous. 
Geographical distribution.—Abroad, it breeds over a 
large area of Northern and Temperate Europe and Asia, 
also in Northern Africa. The migration-range, in autumn 
and winter, extends along the European sea-board, south- 
ward to Cape Colony, and eastward over the Asiatic Con- 
tinent to India, China, Japan, and the adjoining Islands. 
DESCRIPTIYE CHARACTERS. 
PLUMAGE. Adult male nuptial——Top of head, hind- 
neck, back, scapulars, and wing-coverts, chequered with 
