CAPRIMULGID^E. 291 



that month. It is decidedly nocturnal in its habits, 

 lying hid under tufts of heather or fern, or under- 

 rough stones, during the day, and coming abroad in 

 the evening in search of its food, which consists of 

 insects, mostly nocturnal ones, such as moths, cock- 

 chaffers and fern-flies. Yarrell says the young birds 

 are easy to rear, and that he has known them kept 

 through their first winter, but that they never 

 attempted to feed themselves. Meyer, however, says 

 that he never succeeded in keeping them alive, even 

 by a kitchen fire, after the first two or three frosty 

 nights. 



The nest is a very slight affair, merely a hole 

 scooped in the ground, under cover of some rough 

 plants or stones. 



The plumage of the Nightjar is so minutely 

 streaked, freckled and spotted with various shades 

 of grey and brown that it is very difficult to describe. 

 I shall only attempt a very general description, which 

 will be quite sufficient, as it is so peculiar in appear- 

 ance that it cannot be mistaken for any other British 

 bird, or indeed for anything except some of its own 

 family, only one other of which has been recognized 

 as British, and that has only occurred once. The 

 beak, which is very small, has the upper mandible 

 black, the lower one black at the tip and pale brown 

 at the base ; the mouth, which, when opened, looks 

 enormously disproportioned both to the little beak 

 and to the head, is pale flesh-colour inside; the 



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