A WINTER'S DAY IN THE MARSHES 19 



any hen-footed fowl, not too big for him, is his prey. 

 The ' shore-shooters ' know him well ; they see him, 

 just as the light begins to fade, come skimming over 

 the flats, now high up, the next moment close to the 

 ground. All at once he stops, and fans with his 

 wings like a kestrel over a tuft of rushes. That fan- 

 ning of the wings is remarkable ; it causes a current 

 of air, much stronger than any one would imagine, 

 which rattles and stirs the dry rushes, so that any 

 creature that has sheltered there comes out and 

 the owl gets it. His near relative, the long-eared 

 owl, has the same tactics on the heaths and commons 

 which are his hunting-ground. He makes the leaves 

 and twigs rattle with the fanning of his wings in the 

 same way. They do not eat all that they catch at the 

 time, but hide it till wanted, and the contents of their 

 larder would surprise many people. 



As we near the sea-wall something shoots over it : 

 a male sparrow-hawk, in full plumage a fine little 

 fellow. We crouch down in between the hillocks and 

 observe his movements ; the bird he was after has 

 taken cover. After a sharp turn or two he settles on 

 a clod of broken-up turf a perfect study ; if you 

 had not seen him perch you might pass close, and 

 not notice him. That tuft of grey sea-blite matches 

 his grey back, and a stem of broken bulrush, reddish- 



C2 



