EUROPEAN GOATSUCKER. 395 



still retaining the wings like some Gulls and 

 Terns, or a Swallow dipping in the water, until 

 they are again required to give the stroke up- 

 wards. All the while, the tail is much expan- 

 ded, and is a conspicuous object in the male, 

 from the white spots on the outer feathers. 

 When in woods, or near trees, the flight is made 

 in glides among the branches, or it flutters close 

 to the summits, and seizes the various phalcence 

 which play around. During the day, the Night 

 Hawk rests on the ground among fern, broom, 

 or heath, or on the low branch of a tree, on 

 which it lies lengthwise, and close to the stem. 

 When disturbed, the flight is low and fluttering, 

 or it skims off to a short distance, and again 

 alights. The nest is formed upon the ground 

 by scraping or deepening some cavity already 

 partly made, and the eggs, two in number, are 

 laid on the bare surface. When the young are 

 approached by night, before they are perfectly 

 fledged, the old birds fly around very near, 

 uttering incessantly their clicking cry, and mak- 

 ing frequent dashes at the intruder like the 

 Lapwing. On the continent of Europe, this bird 

 is generally distributed, but we do not know its 

 extra European range. 



It is scarcely possible to describe the plumage 

 f the CaprimulgidcB so that it can be understood 

 in all its parts, and one or two prominent mark- 

 ings are often sufficient to make out the species. 

 In our native bird, it is composed of shades of 

 gray and brown, white and ochry yellow, and 



