THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SNIPE. 209 



position apart from other British birds. Although one of the 

 shy and wary race of waders, it will on occasion wait until actually 

 trodden on. I once saw a pointer place his paw upon a Jack- 

 Snipe, holding the bird until I picked it up, and I can remember 

 at least one case of a bird being caught in a cloth cap. 



Such occurrences are unusual, for, although lying appa- 

 rently paralyzed, the bird is really perfectly alert, and when 

 capture seems imminent it springs — a living Jack-in-the-box — 

 far into the air, and is well on the wing before the startled 

 intruder can gather his wits. A winged Grouse or Plover, if 

 unable to hide, will seek safety in running. The wounded Snipe 

 progresses in a series of huge hops, a gait that is the response 

 to the instinct telling that the first move out of danger is 

 to spring into the air. 



Many sportsmen believe that the Snipe uses its bill as a 

 third leg in leaping from the ground, and that occasionally it 

 will strike downwards with such force on soft ground that the 

 bill becomes embedded, and cannot be withdrawn quickly enough 

 to avoid capture. I once had a Common Snipe brought to me 

 by a man who had caught it in this manner. He was, however, 

 mistaken, as I shall explain later. Neither the Common Snipe 

 nor the Jack use the bill in this way. I have frequently watched 

 them rise, sometimes from a distance of a few inches (in 

 observing both wild and captive birds), and always found the 

 bill to be kept parallel with the ground. The birds spring 

 entirely from the legs, which are in both species extraordinarily 

 large and muscular. 



In the Jack- Snipe the muscles of the toes are particularly 

 powerful, and the leg of the bird is bigger than that of a Knot, 

 which far exceeds it in size and weight (two and a quarter ounces 

 against five ounces). The muscles of the thigh are also un- 

 usually large, but direct observation suggests that the toes are 

 chiefly used in the work of lifting the bird from the ground. 



The necessity for this powerful apparatus is obvious, for 

 protective colours on a bare marsh would be of little use in the 

 event of their owner being unable to get a good start when 

 movement became imperative. Perhaps this suggests a use for 

 the long inner secondaries, which keep the primaries dry and 

 prepared for flight, although the rest of the plumage may be 



