15 



CURLEW. 



COMMON CURLEW. WHAAP. WHITTERICK. 



PLATE CLXIV. FIG. II. 



Numenius arquata, PENNANT. 



Numenius major, STEPHENS. 



Scolopax arquafa, MoNTAOTT. 



THE nest of this bird, if any be made in some slight hollow, consists 

 only of a little dry grass, twigs, or leaves, or is placed in the middle 

 of a tuft of the former, among heather or rushes. 



The eggs, laid in April and May, are four in number, and they differ 

 much both in their ground colour and the spots. They ape of a pale 

 dull green, blotted all over with two shades of brown, and are very 

 large for the size of the bird. They are placed quatrefoil in the nest, 

 the narrow ends inwards. The young run about almost as soon as 

 hatched, but are not able to fly for a considerable time. Until then 

 they are assiduously attended to by their parents. If approached, they 

 hide themselves among the inequalities of the ground, and lie very close, 

 the old birds endeavouring the while to attract the enemy away. 



