100 SCOLOPAX MINOR. 



October and November, that country beinir in fact only 

 its winter quarters; for, early in Marrh, they move off 

 to the northern parts of the Continent to breed. The 

 American species, on the contrary, winters in countries 

 south of the United States, arrives lien 1 early in March, 

 extends its migrations as far, at least, as the river St 

 Lawrence, breeds in all the intermediate places, and 

 retires again to the south on the approach of winter. 

 The one migrates from the torrid to the temperate 

 regions, the other, from the temperate to the arctic. 

 The two birds, therefore, notwithstanding their names 

 are the same, differ not only in size and markings, but 

 also in native climate. Hence the absurdity of those 

 who would persuade us, that the woodcock of America 

 crosses the Atlantic to Europe, and vice versa. These 

 observations have been thought necessary, from the 

 respectability of some of our own writers, who seem to 

 have adopted this opinion. 



How far to the north our woodcock is found, I am 

 unable to say. It is not mentioned as a bird of Hudson's 

 Bay, and, being altogether unknown in the northern 

 parts of Europe, it is very probable that its migrations 

 do not extend to a very high latitude ; for, it may be 

 laid down as a general rule, that those birds which 

 migrate to the arctic regions, in either continent, are 

 yery often common to both. The head of the woodcock 

 is of singular conformation, large, somewhat triangular, 

 and the eye fixed at a remarkable distance from the bill, 

 and high in the head. This construction was necessary 

 to give a greater range of vision, and to secure the eye 

 from injury, while the owner was searching in the mire. 

 The flight of the woodcock is slow. When flushed at 

 any time in the woods, he rises to the height of the 

 bushes or underwood, and almost instantly drops behind 

 them again at a short distance, generally running off 

 for several yards as soon as he touches the ground. 

 The notion that there are two species of woodcock in 

 this country probably originated from the great differ- 

 ence of size between the male and female, the latter 

 being considerably the larger. 



