176 British Birds ^ 



characteristic. His Latin name, as given above, simply 

 means " pugnacious warrior," and verily he is as 

 thorough a lover of battle as any knight-errant of the 

 Middle Asres, or fierce Northern sea-rover of four or 

 five centuries earlier. They do not pair, and therefore 

 fight for the possession of the females, and they used 

 to have spots, known to the fenmen by the name of 

 Hills, which were as much the scenes of universal 

 challensre and battle as ever the stated " lists " of the 

 old days of tournament or playing at battle. This 

 habit of theirs facilitated the process of capture very 

 materially, and by means of a peculiar kind of net, 

 duly arranged before the day began to dawn, the 

 fowler was enabled to capture all, or almost all, who 

 had been attracted by their peculiar instincts to the 

 vicinity of any given '* hill." The Reeves lay each her 

 four eggs, which vary in colour from olive-green to a 

 yellowish stone-colour, and are spotted and blotched 

 with " liver-colour " and rich brown. 



BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER— ( Tryngites 

 riifescens ; formerly, Tringa riifescens). 



It has occurred perhaps some half-dozen times. 



BARTRAM'S SANDPIPER— (^^r/r^w/^ longi- 

 caiida ; formerly, Totanus Bartramia). 



A rare straggler to our coasts. 



COMMON SANDPIPER— (r^/^;2;/i- hypoleuca). 



Summer Snipe, Willy Wicket, Sand Lark. — A 

 pretty little bird enough, and seeming to be pretty 



