RCOLOPACID.K — THE SNIPE FAMILY - LIMO.SA. 



205 



iviiiriU'il from Ciimliriilj,'t'sliin', N'oitliiiiiilMTlaiKl, aiul Irinn the vicinity of Solway 

 i'lrtii. liiviiiK HptM'imi'ii.s ar«' occasionally hroii^lit, from Holland to Kn^'land; and 

 tlic l)ird, in a scmi-<lomc.stic state, is not infi'ci|iicntly contincd in wailed ^aDlcns, 

 wlicic it makes a very interesting and amnsin^,' pet. ( (fliers are fatt'd for tlie market 

 with iiread and milk, as is also done with the Kiitf ; l.-ut the (.iodwit is not e(|uul in 

 liivor to the latter when thus treated. 



The (Iodwit is fonnd dnrin^' the summer in Denmark; and it also visits, in con- 

 siiliiidile ninnlMTs, various jiarts ot Si-andinavia, and especially liapland, K'"'"k' '"^ fm' 

 iioitli as Iceland, and mHuisiunally to (ireeiilaml. In the more southern coinitries of 

 till' Kuropcan continent it is exclusively seen in spring,' and autumn. It is (piite com- 

 iiion in Spain ; and livinj,' specimens were .sent to the Zoological (iarden from Tangier, 

 where it was said to he not uncommon, U-sides others from Tunis and ditferent local- 

 ities in North Africa. According to Scliin/ (••Fauna Hidvetica"), this liird is occa- 

 Niniially seen, as a mi^'rant. in Switzerland; and not infreipiently a pair is supposed 

 t(i remain and nest, as hirds are from tinn- to time taken in llcir summer plumuK*'. 

 Ill May it passes north through Italy and iJenoa, and returns, reinforced in n>iml»er.s, 

 ill the month id' .Xu^nist. It is said to lie rare in Sicily, iiut is more common at Malta, 

 ihiriiii,' its migrations. Specimens have lieen taken in Tripoli; and the Zoiilo^'ical 

 Sdiicty received a yuuM^; liird of the year from Trehi/ond. !l<dienacker, a Russian 

 iiaturali.st, nientions this species amoni,' the birds <d»tained by him in the vicinity of 

 till' Caucasus ; Mr. ifod^'son includes it amon^' tho.se found in Nepal, and Mr. IMyth 

 ill tiie list of those occurring' at Calcutta. .Mr. Temmiiick also states that it may by 

 tniind in •lapan and on the Isles (if Sunda. 



.VicordiuLj to .M. (ierbe. this species h;is been observed at diH'erent seasons in 

 iiciirly every portion of Kurope, .\sia, and .\frica. In France it is a re^'ular bird of 

 |i:issap' in autumn, and a^ain in spriu);, passing north in .March and .\pril, and niov- 

 iic.,' .siaith in SepttMuU-r and OctnlM-r. Many of these birds are snared in the sprint;, 

 lietween Doii.ii and Cand)rai, and kept within <;ardens enclosed by walls; but tht; 

 j.Mvater numiier of them perish during,' the winter for want of suitalde biod. The 

 same author adds that this species m>st8 in damp meadows, in the {rrass, or among 

 the reeds. Its eggs are four in numlM-r. rouiMh'd at one end, pyriform in shape, and 

 (jiiite variable in regard to shades of color, (ienerally thev have a deep olive ground, 

 willi jMiints and blotches of a russet, or a jiale brown color. Some of these are of a 

 vri y deep shatle, others iire very faint. These markings are more numen)ns, larger, 

 ami more conHuent ;diont the larger end. .M. (Jerbe possessed varieties id' this egg, 

 siMiie of which had a reddish-white and some a y<dlowish-wliite ground; while in 

 others it was of a very pale green color. Some are itrofusely s]»rinkled with siwts of 

 an inten.sely deep coloring, and again others are cd' a uniforndy ashy gray, and 

 ail' entirely unspotted. He gives their greater diameter as varying from u.'{ to (Jl 

 miliinietres, and the suuiller from .'>7 to 4<i. 



Acconiing to llewitson, the lUack-tailed (bidwit begins to lay its eggs early 

 ii' May. Its nest is comjiimed of dry grass and other vegetables, and is cimcealed 

 aiming the co;irse herliage of the swamps and low meadows. The eggs, four in num- 

 1» r. he descrilM's as of a light olive brown, blotched and spotted with darker brown. 

 tliiir length L'.l7 inches and their brciidth l.."»<» inches, and in form they are decidedly 

 lii'iir-shaped. 



Ill addition, we learn from the olhservations of Dr. L. Taczanowski, of Warsaw, as 



limited by Dresser, that large nundHMs of this bird breed in marshy localities on the 



c:istern side of the N'istula. In the spring, as soon as the snow disapjiears, this bird 



ai lives in the marshes, and frenuents their eilges. It begins to breeil early in May, 



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