THE WOODCOCK 



on their way to and from their breeding-grounds in 

 more northern lands. It is during this passage that the 

 bird is chiefly noticed now near London, the indigenous 

 individuals having been long exterminated. During 

 the daytime it hides away under bushes or amongst rank 

 vegetation in wet places. At dusk it comes out from its 

 retreat and repairs to its feeding-places in the swamps and 

 wet fields, where it probes into the soft ground for worms, 

 which, with grubs and beetles, form its principal food. 

 The Woodcock seldom flies far when flushed, and its 

 movements in the air just as it rises are somewhat erratic. 

 It soon settles down into a slower and even laboured 

 flight, and often utters a croaking note as it takes wing. 

 In the breeding season the male indulges in long flights 

 in the morning and at night, passing to and fro along 

 certain beats, uttering a curious harsh note, or a strange 

 whistling cry. This is a love display, termed " roding," 

 and should two rival males meet whilst it is being per- 

 formed a combat frequently results. The Woodcock, 

 except during actual migration, is not a very sociable 

 bird, and when found in company it is usually the result 

 of a common cause. The earliest eggs of the Woodcock 

 are laid towards the end of March, but the majority in 

 April, and again to a lesser extent in May. The nest is 

 made on the ground, in some quiet spot in a wood or 

 plantation, and is merely a hollow scantily lined with 

 dead leaves and dry grass. The four eggs are not so 

 pear-shaped as usual with the class to which the Wood- 

 cock belongs, and are pale buff, spotted and blotched 

 somewhat sparingly with reddish brown and grey. The 

 young when newly hatched are, it is said, often carried by 

 the parents to the feeding-places, and the old birds will 

 remove them if the nest is disturbed. 



A very detailed description of the Woodcock is not 

 necessary here, as the bird is too familiar to Londoners 

 in every game-dealer's establishment during autumn and 



285 



