THE WOODCOCK 
on their way to and from their breeding-grounds in 
more northern lands. It is during this passage that the 
bird is chiefly noticed now near London, the indigenous 
individuals having been long exterminated. During 
the daytime it hides away under bushes or amongst rank 
vegetation in wet places. At dusk it comes out from its 
retreat and repairs to its feeding-places in the swamps and 
wet fields, where it probes into the soft ground for worms, 
which, with grubs and beetles, form its principal food. 
The Woodcock seldom flies far when flushed, and its 
movements in the air just as it rises are somewhat erratic. 
It soon settles down into a slower and even laboured 
flight, and often utters a croaking note as it takes wing. 
In the breeding season the male indulges in long flights 
in the morning and at night, passing to and fro along 
certain beats, uttering a curious harsh note, or a strange 
whistling cry. ‘This is a love display, termed “ roding,” 
and should two rival males meet whilst it is being per- 
formed a combat frequently results. ‘The Woodcock, 
except during actual migration, is not a very sociable 
bird, and when found in company it is usually the result 
of acommon cause. ‘The earliest eggs of the Woodcock 
are laid towards the end of March, but the majority in 
April, and again to a lesser extent in May. ‘The nest is 
made on the ground, in some quiet spot in a wood or 
plantation, and is merely a hollow scantily lined with 
dead leaves and dry grass. ‘The four eggs are not so 
pear-shaped as usual with the class to which the Wood- 
cock belongs, and are pale buff, spotted and blotched 
somewhat sparingly with reddish brown and grey. ‘The 
young when newly hatched are, it is said, often carried by 
the parents to the feeding-places, and the old birds will 
remove them if the nest is disturbed. 
A very detailed description of the Woodcock is not 
necessary here, as the bird is too familiar to Londoners 
in every game-dealer’s establishment during autumn and 
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