SHORE SHOOTING ON FOOT. 5 
remarking here that Greenshanks on the wing can be told from Redshanks by 
their longer bodies and more mellow note. 
Apart from the probability of stalking something in the drain itself, 
perhaps a Little Stint or a Curlew-Sandpiper, there is also the chance of 
seeing some good Wader on the wing in the distance, in which case you can 
crouch under the nearer bank and try to whistle him over. A newly arrived 
Godwit or Whimbrel will in the majority of cases respond, and, if you only 
IN A TIDAL DRAIN. 
keep still long enough, a good shot is almost sure to result. In fact, merely 
waiting in a favourite channel is in most cases attended with more success 
than promiscuous following, especially late in the day when you have discovered 
the direction of the evening flight. But it is not such an easy matter as it 
would appear. ‘The mud is so soft that to remain stationary for more than a 
few seconds is to be submerged up to the knees with the prospect of being 
converted into a fixture, if you happen to be far from the bank. “‘ Faczlis 
descensus Avernt,”’ glibly murmurs Virgil; and the remark is equally true of 
