316 THE BIRDS OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



case in the days of our historian, the Land-Rail, or 

 Corn-Crake, is now a very common summer visitor 

 to our county, and though not often to be seen 

 without special looking for and hunting up, may be 

 heard at almost all hours of the day and night, all 

 along the valley of the Nen, from early May till the 

 end of June. We certainly never heard the cry of 

 this bird in Northamptonshire before April 20th, and 

 very seldom so early as that date, and consider that 

 the usual time for its arrival with us is during the 

 first week of May ; but it is more than probable that, 

 as in the case of many other migratory birds, the 

 Rails may be in the country for some days without 

 making their presence known. The favourite food 

 of the Land-Rail consists of small snails, and where- 

 ever these are to be met with one may expect to meet 

 with, or at all events to hear, this Crake. In a dry 

 May, when our low-lying meadows are comparatively 

 bare of grass, our birds take to the wet ditches and 

 the covert of aquatic plants on the banks of the 

 river and brooks ; but as soon as the meadow-grass, 

 young corn, or clover affords good hiding the Land- 

 Rails take to the open fields, our experience being 

 that they are rather inclined to avoid the neighbour- 

 hood of fences and bushes, unless driven thereunto 

 by pursuit or want of other covert. 



Though this bird is, as we have said, exceedingly 

 common in our district in the early summer, very 

 few come to hand in the shooting season; this of 

 course is partly to be accounted for by the number 

 of eggs destroyed in mowing with machines, and by 

 the difficulty in making the Land-Rail take wing 

 from the thick seed-clover or standing barley in 

 which it is generally to be found in September. 



