J AC ANAS AND WATER PHEASANTS 2273 



common species has been observed perching on a tree, and they never settle where 

 the water is deep enough to wet the feathers of the breast. At ordinary seasons a 

 very silent bird, when breeding, the common snipe utters a peculiar two-syllabled 

 note, compared to tyik-tyuk, of which the utterance is accompanied by a nodding of 

 the head. Moreover, the males at the same season indulge in the peculiar per- 

 formance known as "drumming," during which they may be seen flying diago- 

 nally upward or round and round in large circles, and then suddenly swooping down 

 with vibrating half -closed wings and outspread tail; the "drumming," which has 

 been compared to the bleating of a goat, being only produced during the descent; 



In Britain newly laid eggs of the common snipe may be found from the middle 

 of April till the middle of May; the nest being a hollow, lined with dried grass, 

 usually placed in the middle of a tussock of rushes or coarse grass in a swamp, or 

 under the protecting shelter of the same. The four eggs are somewhat variable in 

 hue, the ground color being some shade of buff or olive, upon which are large 

 blotches of rich, dark brown, with large underlying markings of lighter brown and 

 gray. The main duty of incubation is performed by the hen bird; and but a single 

 brood is produced during the year. In the Arctic regions the eggs, like those of 

 the jack snipe, are not laid till June. 



JACANAS AND WATER PHEASANTS 

 Family PARRIDsE 



Mainly from the circumstance that many of them have a naked shield on the 

 forehead, like that of the coots and moor hens, the members of the present small 

 family were formerly classed with the rails, although their true position appears to 

 be here. From the Charadriidce they are distinguished by the presence of unossified 

 vacuities in the occipital surface of the skull, while they differ from all other birds 

 in the extraordinary elongation of their toes. They are handsomely-colored birds, 

 black, or black and white, being the predominating tints, but the young are less 

 brilliant than the adults. The group is confined to South America, Africa, south of 

 the Tropic of Cancer, the Indian region, Australia, and Papua. 



The jacanas (Parra), of which there are ten species, have a dis- 



TcLCcLflcLS 



tribution coextensive with that of the family; and although their fossil 

 remains have not been discovered, it is probable that they lived in Europe during 

 the Tertiary period, and have reached their present habitat by a southerly migra- 

 tion. The species here figured (P. nigra), is an inhabitant of Brazil. They are 

 long-legged, slenderly-built birds, with short tails, spurs on the wings, and the 

 aforesaid shield on the head. Insectivorous in their diet, they frequent lakes and 

 quiet rivers, where their long toes enable them to walk over the leaves of the water 

 lilies. The nest is a rude structure, built near the edge of the water; and the eggs, 

 which vary from four to six in number, and have a bluish-green ground with liver- 

 colored spots, often rest on the bare soil. 



