BIRDS MET WITH BY THE WILDFOWLER 349 



of mud becomes almost invisible, so well do its colours har- 

 monise with its surroundings. 



Its method of "squatting " is rather peculiar, for it puts its 

 beak down and its body and tail well in the air and generally 

 pressed up against some growing vegetation. In this position 

 the two light dorsal stripes appear like blades of grass, and all 

 trace of the contour and shape of the bird is lost. 



The sexes are alike in plumage. The general colour above 

 is dark brown, with a light buff stripe across the crown and two 

 stripes of a similar colour down the back, which is also mottled 

 with huffish. Cheeks and chin are white, flecked with dark 

 brown ; chest and flanks ash-brown ; rest of under parts white. 

 The young resemble their parents, but show more uniformity in 

 coloration of the upper parts. Length 1075 '"• 5 t)''l 2*5 in.; 

 wing 5 in. 



There is a dark variety of this bird, known as Sabine's 

 Snipe, which is occasionally met with, especially in Ireland. 

 It has the whole of the upper parts ash-brown, barred with 

 black, and the light stripes on the back are absent. Inter- 

 mediates between the normal and the true Sabines are not 

 uncommon. 



, JACK SNIPE 



Scolopax gallinula {Linnceus) 



Breeding in the north-western corner of Europe as far 

 east as Archangel, the Jack Snipe is a common autumn and 

 winter visitor to this country, arriving towards the end of 

 October and often not leaving our shores till well on in 

 summer, but there is no authenticated case of its ever having 

 bred with us. In habits it closely resembles the Common 

 Snipe, but lies much closer when being "walked up," and 

 then, rising at one's feet, goes off at a great pace. It is a 

 more solitary bird than the Common Snipe, and a single one 

 may often be found for a whole winter in the same spot. 



