386 Wild Life in Wales 



ground was not more than usually uneven, though its 

 surface was freely marked by the runs of voles, almost 

 inseparable from such moorland pasture. After my un- 

 profitable search, I retired to a clump of sallow bushes, not 

 far off, and concealed myself, determined to see what 

 watching could do. In about half an hour, a snake-like 

 head protruded above one of the piles of grass, warned me 

 of the mother's approach, and she had barely reached the 

 site of my late hunt ere first one and then another head 

 appeared, and she was soon making her way towards the 

 moor, attended by not less than six little ones. Upon my 

 first movement, all instantly disappeared, most of them 

 where they ran, but one or two following their mother into 

 the greater security of the cover offered by the edge of the 

 swathe. On reaching the spot, I almost captured the 

 mother beneath the cut grass before she took wing, and 

 then found four of the young ones ; but the other two had 

 vanished as mysteriously as before, nor, though the search 

 was kept up for some time, could any trace of them be 

 discovered. Those caught were rather larger than sparrows, 

 very slim, long-legged creatures, and had lost almost all 

 trace of the black down, but the flight feathers had not yet 

 begun to appear. When liberated, they vanished like 

 lizards into the nearest cover, and there lay compressed 

 into surprisingly little space. 



About Llanuwchllyn the Corn Crake is as numerous 

 as in most parts of Wales, and is known as Rhegen-yr-yd^ 

 Rhegen-y-rhych^ equivalents of the English name, and 

 Creciar ; it is also sometimes spoken of as Ysgrech-y-gwair, 

 or screech of the hay-field. It is not often met with after 

 September comes in ; but towards the end of that month 

 I one day disturbed some Geese in the act of trying to 

 devour one near Tain-y-nant, and one picked up below the 

 telegraph wires has already been referred to on page 258. 



Geese are not generally particular as to what they eat, 

 but in this neighbourhood their omnivorous taste is even 

 more pronounced than in most places. This may, perhaps, 

 arise from the general practice of turning the flocks out on 

 to the open moors as soon as the goslings are fairly grown, 



