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and in alighting the legs are brought down so 

 quickly that it is next to impossible, under any 

 ordinary circumstances, to detect the exact posi- 

 tion in which they had been carried. These 

 remarks apply of course to normal flight, and not 

 to hovering or fluttering movements, when the legs 

 of most species are dropped, as if the feet were 

 preparing to seize some perching place. Most 

 readers may be aware that such birds as Herons 

 carry their long legs astern, for they can be very 

 plainly seen projecting far beyond the tail ; but 

 much less certainty of opinion would be expressed 

 if the short-legged birds formed the object of 

 discussion. In such short-legged birds as Gulls 

 and Gannets it is easy to remark the legs pointing 

 backwards during flight, often tucked completely 

 out of sight amongst the plumage of the vent 

 and the under tail-coverts. These birds often fly 

 slowly and hover above the head of the observer, 

 so that the fact may readily be remarked. Then, 

 too, some of the long-legged Waders (the Godwits 

 are a capital example) show their legs and feet 

 projecting beyond the tail during flight. But 

 beyond these limits an ordinary observer would 

 not, perhaps, be prepared to go. So far as our 



