400 LAND-BIRDS AND GAME-BIRDS 
(In New England, most abundant as a migrant, but locally 
common as a summer-resident.) 
Fig. 22. Woodcock (}). 
(a). About eleven inches long. Beneath, varying from 
(very) pale reddish buff to ruddy chestnut, darkest on the sides, 
whitening on the chin and cheeks. Above, varied with the 
same tint, with black, and with grayish. Forehead scarcely 
marked, but bordered by a dark, irregular (and often indistinct) 
line from the bill to the eye. Immature specimens are paler 
and grayer above, and have several white markings. 
(b). The eggs average about 1°50 X 1°20 of an inch, though 
variable in size and shape, and are creamy, brownish, or clay- 
color, spotted and blotched with lilac and rather dull or indis- 
tinct browns. In Massachusetts, a set of four is usually laid 
about the middle of April. The places chosen are swampy 
groves, especially of alders or birches, and sometimes pastures 
or clearings. There is but little or no nest. 
(c). A “game-bird,” though exceptions may be taken to al- 
