The Snipes. 429 



tion, there are few tracts from which this 

 species has not been recorded. It is 

 commoner in the hills than in the plains, 

 but it is found everywhere at times, almost 

 down to the level of the sea in Burma, 

 and probably also in other Provinces. 



The Wood-Cock is widely distributed 

 throughout Europe and Asia, breeding as 

 far north as the Arctic circle in Norway 

 and Sweden, and up to about the 60th 

 degree of latitude in Asia. In the winter 

 it is found as far south as the Mediter- 

 ranean, Persia, India, Burma and China. 

 This species is a permanent resident in 

 many parts of the world, particularly on 

 certain ranges of mountains, and it is also 

 found all the year round in the Azores, 

 the Canaries and Madeira. 



The Wood-Cock is erratic in its migra- 

 tions, and in many portions of the Empire 

 is only a chance visitor, which may be met 

 with at any time in the cold weather. In 

 the parts which they regularly visit, they 

 may be looked for in November. They 

 return north in March. As suggested by 

 Messrs, Hume and Marshall, it is prob- 

 able that all the Wood-Cocks that visit 

 the plains of India are natives of the 

 Himalayas, for the reason that all Indian- 

 killed birds are persistently smaller and 



