WOODCOCKS AND SNIPES. 161 



know, on good authority, that the Pheasant will, 

 in like manner, when alarmed, carry off her eggs 

 and form a new nest, but with respect to the Wood- 

 cock also, the fact may be considered as now estab- 

 lished on the authority of other competent witnesses, 

 who had had repeated opportunities of ascertaining 

 the point, in other parts of Scotland where Wood- 

 cocks frequently breed. It is probably, indeed, 

 more commonly adopted by birds than we suspect; 

 it has been noticed in the case of the Ring-tailed 

 Glede (Falco cyaneus), and the following account 

 from eye-witnesses bears similar testimony to the 

 power of the Owl. 



A friend of ours had taken a brood of young Owls, 

 and placed them in a recess on a barn-floor, from 

 whence, to his surprise, they soon disappeared, and 

 were again discovered in their original breeding- 

 place. Determined to solve the mystery of this 

 unaccountable removal, he placed them on the 

 barn-floor, and concealing himself, watched their 

 proceedings, when to his surprise, he soon perceived 

 the parent birds gliding down, and entwining their 

 feet in the feet of their young ones, flew off with 

 them to their nest. To confirm the fact beyond a 

 doubt, the experiment was often repeated, in the 

 presence of other witnesses. 



It remains to make a few remarks on the migra- 

 tion of Woodcocks, which is attended with more 

 mystery than that of most other birds. We shall 

 endeavour, briefly to state the chief points for con- 

 sideration. First, we have every reason to believe 

 that the greater proportion, on leaving this country 

 in March, retire to the wild solitudes of Norway or 



VOL. II. M 



