262 WILD LIFE ON A NORFOLK ESTUARY 



be wondered at, considering its bulky form ; and on arriving 

 from across-seas it alights to rest on the first opportunity 

 that offers. A clump of furze, a tuft of marams, or a bush 

 offer ample shelter ; and in very bare places it is astonishing 

 how easily its plumage harmonises with the surrounding 

 colour. On October Hth, 1905, I was strolling along the 

 New Road, near Breydon, when a man in a garden hailed 

 me, saying that he had just put up a woodcock, and pointed 

 out to me an exposed grassy spot just under a low, scrubby 



A LIKELY CORNER. WOODCOCK 



bush ; the grass was pressed down, and excreta lay on it. 

 The man assured me he had passed and repassed the 

 place several times that day, but had not noticed the 

 stranger hidden there ; and there can be no doubt that 

 the cock had dropped in there before daybreak, and had 

 rested itself until the eventide. This habit of lying close 

 has been fatal to several birds to my certain knowledge. 



A woodcock which I examined on December i5th, 1905, 

 weighed twelve ounces, and had a remarkably short bill, 

 barely measuring two inches in length. 



