SNIPES, SANDPIPERS, ETC.—Family Scolopacide 
AMERICAN WOODCOCK 
228. Philohela minor. 11 in. 
Bill very long; eyes very large and located near the 
top of the head; form heavy; legs short; plumage much 
mottled with black, brown and gray. These peculiar 
birds are very well known throughout their range, to 
gunners and sportsmen, who have been the means of 
almost completely exterminating them in some _ locali- 
ties. They are found in runs along the edges of brooks, 
where the mud is soft. Their food is of worms, insects 
- and their larve, which they get from the ground by 
‘boring with their long bills. Their flight is very rapid, 
and when startled they double and twist in their haste 
to get away, their three narrow outer wing feathers 
producing a peculiar whistling sound. 
Notes.—A low peep, and a twittering. 
Nest.—Simply a hollow amid the surrounding leaves; 
the 4 eggs are buff, with yellowish-brown spots (1.50 x 
1.15); April, May. 
Range.—Eastern N. A., breeding chiefly from Ohio 
and New Jersey, northward; winters in southern U. 8. 
