WRYNECK 



lynx torqutlla 



N the south-eastern counties of England the Wryneck is a 

 common bird ; in most other localities it is rarer and very 

 locally distributed. It is an occasional summer visitor 

 to several of the Scottish counties, and has occurred as 

 far north as the Orkneys and Shetlands on migration. I 

 can only find one or two records of its occurrence in 

 Ireland. 



The Wryneck is a summer visitor to Great Britain, arriving in the 

 southern counties in March and the beginning of April, and leaving our 

 shores again in September. It frequents well-wooded districts, and is fond 

 of old orchards, large gardens, parks, and plantations where there are plenty 

 of trees to afford it shelter. It is a very shy bird, and is seldom seen 

 except in pairs. In Suffolk, I have seen it in the little clumps of Scotch 

 firs on the edge of the heaths, or among the rough ground covered with 

 stunted elder-bushes and blackthorn. Its flight is very undulating, and it is 

 not often seen on the wing except when passing from tree to tree. It may 

 sometimes be seen among the slender twigs at the top of a tree collecting the 

 insects from the leaves, sometimes fluttering in the air to catch a passing 

 insect. On the trunk of the tree it does not use its tail as a support as the 

 true Woodpeckers do, but usually perches sideways, one foot up the trunk 

 and the other down, as a Tit does. 



The food of the Wryneck consists almost exclusively of insects. It is 

 extremely fond of ants and their eggs, and may often be seen on the ground 

 working assiduously at some ant-hill. It moves about on the ground in a 

 series of jerky hops, assisting itself with its wings and tail. When feeding, its 

 tongue is shot out and withdrawn with amazing rapidity, the ants' eggs sticking 

 to the glutinous surface. It may often be seen picking the ants from the 



