58 



MY LIFE AS A NATURALIST 



Winter, I have trudged many miles across country seeking for 

 knowledge of the outdoor world. Larks have risen from beneath 

 my feet as they cautiously contrived to take protective advantage 

 of their environment ; close-squatting Snipe have stayed until 

 the last moment before taking wing ; trim Wagtails have moved 

 from clod to clod " tisiting " as they proceeded, and flirting 

 their tails for very joy of life. Even the elegant Yellow Wagtail 

 a Summer visitor has fed within a few feet of my resting place 

 in a damp meadow, where flaring Marsh Marigolds and Shake- 

 speare's Cuckoo flowers all silver-white, painted the green grass 

 with unfeigned delight. 



FIG. 21. LAPWING IN FLIGHT. 



Lapwings have screamed and tumbled, remarkable feathered 

 acrobats in the air, and, at times, I have almost held my breath 

 for fear the bold aerial adventurer should suddenly lose its equi- 

 librium and dash towards the earth, stunned as a result of its 

 remarkable evolutions. 



One red-letter day in a secluded copse near Alban's City will 

 always remain with me, for, within an hour, I saw and heard 

 all three British Woodpeckers. The laughter-like notes of the 

 handsome Green fellow take one into the heart of rural England, 

 but I like best the drummer-like vibrations of the Lesser Spotted, 

 happy-go-lucky bird-sprite that he is. He drums and sings to 



