The Snipes. 435 



following interesting note by Mr. B. B. 

 Osmaston, from the pages of the Bombay 

 Natural History Society's Journal. He 

 was in the Tons Valley, and he says : — 



"On June 17th, as I was leaving their 

 favourite haunts, I flushed a Woodcock 

 in thick herbage at my feet, which only 

 flew a few yards and then fell fluttering 

 to the ground again. My heart beat fast, 

 for I thought that at last I had certainly 

 found the long-sought-for treasure ; but 

 no such luck, for I soon saw instead of 

 eggs, three tiny chicks only a day or two 

 old, quite unable to fly, but most clever 

 at running and hiding themselves. I then 

 turned my attention to their mother, who, 

 all the time I had been inspecting her 

 brood, had been going through the 

 strangest of antics with outspread wings 

 and tail, and making a continuous sort 

 of grating, purring noise. She allowed 

 me to approach within a few feet, and 

 then, with an apparent effort, half-fluttered, 

 half-ran away." 



In Europe the Wood-Cock breeds as 

 early as the commencement of March. 

 The nest is generally placed on the out- 

 skirts of a wood, and invariably on the 

 ground. The eggs are four in number. 



The eggs of the Wood-Cock vary much 



