April 



the bird is describing being tilted up, and that out- 

 side depressed. At the same moment the tail feathers 

 are opened out, so that the sky may be seen between 

 them as through the fingers of an open hand. Imme- 

 diately the wings and tail are so set, the tips of the 

 former begin to vibrate, the tail feathers remaining 

 rigid, and the bird strikes off at a tangent, curving 

 outwards and slipping downwards from the normal 

 path of its circular flight. It is this recurring 

 tangential deviation which causes the circle of the 

 snipe's flight to become so vast. During the outward- 

 curving, downward flight, the snipe's strange hum- 

 ming note is heard, synchronizing precisely with the 

 vibration of the tips of its wings. The bill is closed 

 when the note is being emitted. The bird's great 

 circular flight is thus made up of two subordinate 

 flights the plain flight and the humming flight, in 

 regular succession. After having described three or 

 four great circles, the snipe reverses its course, and 

 proceeds in the opposite direction ; but it is to be 

 observed that in its " humming " flight it still works 

 always on its " outer edge," the wing outside the 

 great circle being invariably the one to be depressed, 

 and the one upon which the bird turns in per- 

 forming the tangential, outward- curbing, downward 

 flight. The sound made by the snipe may be 

 nearly imitated by laughing in the throat with the 

 lips closed, and associates itself in my mind with that 

 made by the puffin when returning laden with fish 

 to his burrow. It is like hollow, mirthless laughter ; 



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