236 SKETCHES OF BIRD LIFE. 



formed Mr. Stevenson that when in company with 

 a friend and a gamekeeper, at Shielda, near Ding- 

 wall, in Ross -shire, he saw a Woodcock in the act 

 of carrying a young one in its claws for some dis- 

 tance. The old bird then returned and clucked 

 about like a hen to draw the rest of the brood to 

 her. His friend had observed the same proceeding 

 on several occasions. 1 



Thus it is placed beyond doubt that the Wood- 

 cock is able to transport its young, in various posi- 

 tions, from place to place, not only when flying 

 from its enemies, but also when going out to feed 

 and returning. 



This curious habit is not confined to the Euro- 

 pean Woodcock, but, according to Audubon and 

 others, has been observed also in the American 

 species. More recently, too, it has been witnessed 

 in England in the case of the Common Snipe. A 

 well - known sportsman, who has adopted the 

 pseudonym of " Idstone," writing in The Field of 

 3Oth May 1874, says that on the 22d of the same 

 month, when crossing a marsh on his way to a trout 

 stream, a Snipe rose almost at his feet, " and there 



1 The Birds of Norfolk, vol. ii. pp. 292, 293. 



