COMMON SANDPIPER. 609 



serves, the female quits the nest as quietly as possible, and 

 usually flies to a distance, making at this time no outcry ; 

 as soon, however, as the young are hatched, her manners 

 completely alter, and the greatest agitation is expressed on 

 the apprehension of danger, and every stratagem is tried, 

 such as feigning lameness, and inability of flight, to divert 

 the attention of the intruder from the unfledged brood. A 

 writer in the vicinity of Clitheroe, in Lancashire, says,* 

 " The Common Sandpiper breeds with us ; and I this year 

 started an old one from her nest, at the root of a fir tree. 

 She screamed out, and rolled about in such a manner, and 

 seemed so completely disabled, that, although perfectly aware 

 that her intention was to allure me from her nest, I could 

 not resist my inclination to pursue her, and, in consequence, 

 T had great difficulty in finding the nest again. It was 

 built of a few dried leaves of the Weymouth pine, and con- 

 tained three young ones, just hatched, and an egg, through 

 the shell of which the bill of the young chick was just 

 making its way ; yet, young as they were, on my taking 

 out the egg to examine it, the little things, which could not 

 have been out of their shells more than an hour or two, set 

 off out of the nest with as much celerity as if they had 

 been running about a fortnight. As I thought the old one 

 would abandon the egg if the young ones left the nest, I 

 caught them again, and covering them up with my hand 

 for some time, they settled down again. Next day all four 

 had disappeared." The adult Sandpiper can swim and 

 dive well, however inapplicable to such a purpose the feet 

 of this little bird may appear to be ; and Mr. Selby men- 

 tions, that the young too, when three weeks or a month old, 

 just before they are able to fly, if discovered and attempted 

 to be caught, boldly take to the water, diving repeated- 



* Magazine of Natural History, vol. vi. p. 148. 

 VOL. H. 11 R 



