364 



CHAKADEIID^ 



side, where it may be found amid the shelter of a heather- 

 tuft. I have discovered it on the bare ground on a 

 mountain in co. Mayo. In some instances the nest is 

 sparsely lined with small bits of sticks and withered grass. 

 On bog-lands in Ireland, as pointed out by Mr. Ussher, 

 many pairs breed in close proximity, though not assembling 

 in colonies. The eggs, four in number, are olive-green, 

 thickly spotted and blotched with brown. Incubation 

 begins towards the end of April. 



When the breeding-haunts are intruded upon, especially 



FIG. 49.-LEFT FOOT OF CURLEW. 1 Nat. size. 



when the young are running about, the parent-birds are 

 bold to a degree, and will brush past the head of an 

 intruder, at the same time uttering shrill, menacing cries. 



The Curlew breeds in many counties in England, most 

 numerously in the north, also in some of the midlands, 

 and more sparingly in the south-western section. In the 



