122 BIRDS OF THE HUMBER DISTRICT. 



at the time in a fifty- acre marsh near the Humber 

 (see < Zoologist/ 1868, p. 1284). 



In the second week of June 1870 seven Reeves 

 and a Ruff, the latter in the beautiful nuptial dress, 

 haunted for some days some grass-lands known as the 

 ( ' Holms " in this parish ; and from seeing them daily 

 in this locality I had good hopes that they intended 

 nesting with us ; they disappeared, however, towards 

 the middle of the month. In August, also, of this 

 year a similar number (namely, a Ruff and seven 

 Reeves) visited the same locality. The male bird at 

 this time had lost all traces of his nuptial dress. 

 At the commencement of the present century Colonel 

 Montagu found them still breeding in the neighbour- 

 hood of Spalding and Boston, but by no means plen- 

 tifully. About the same period, as far as I can 

 ascertain, they still nested, but in limited numbers, 

 in the North-Lincoln marshes. 



In the < Zoologist' for 1864 (p. 9362) Mr. Boulton 

 mentions specimens shot from a marshy track of land 

 near the river Hull in the autumn and further states 

 that a gamekeeper who resides near the river says 

 he has not only seen, but killed and eaten, several during 

 that summer, which were in excellent condition, and 

 that he believes they were all of them birds of the year. 



178. SCOLOPAX RUSTICOLA, Linnseus. Woodcock, 



Amongst the many autumn rnigratories visiting the 

 east coast there is none more generally looked for and 



