972 (ED1CNEMUS SCOLOPAX. 



three birds were generally to be found ; bnt so watchful were they, that on hearing one's footsteps a long way off or 

 seeing the approach of any one from a distance they would take to their heels, and dodging adroitly round the 

 bushes would squat down in some sequestered nook where it was almost impossible to find them. When they 

 are surprised they run swiftly for a yard or two and then get up, flying over the bushes and suddenly dropping, 

 when they will run with all speed, and cannot again be flushed without a dog; or they will squat on the ground 

 resting on their tarsi, and so endeavour to avoid observation. From this habit they are called by the natives 

 " Jungle-Hare." Indeed the habits of both this and the next species are not those of Plovers, but resemble 

 more those of the Bustards, to which family they are allied as regards their anatomy. It is very fond of tin; 

 cinnamon-gardens on the west coast, as these bushy places are exactly suited to its tastes; and I have 

 seen it even in the cultivated cinnamon at the back of the bungalows of Colpetty. Iu India it is often 

 found among stony low hills, or in cleared spots iu the jungle ; and it is, according to Jerdon, a favourite quarry 

 for the Shikra with the natives. It is nocturnal as regards feeding, and subsists on grasshoppers, Mantidaj, 

 flies, bugs (Hemiptera), and so forth. It has been noticed to run quickly to and fro among grass, snapping 

 off the insects from the blades as it proceeded. It has a wild loud cry, not so musical or so high in tone as 

 that of the next species, nor does it consist of so many syllables. I have never heard it in the daytime, except 

 on one occasion, when I met with a pair which evidently had a nest in an island on the Batticaloa Lake, 

 and which were very noisy, uttering loud cries even before I landed in their domain. 



In Egypt the " Stone-Curlew" contracts, according to Von Heuglin, rather abnormal habits. He notes 

 that, elsewhere so shy, it has there, to some degree, taken up with human beings, and runs about, often in 

 considerable numbers, on the flat roofs of mosques, manufactories, barracks, fortifications, tombs, and dilapidated 

 houses, even breeding among them, and that it is also to be seen among ruins, graveyards, and rubbish-heaps. 

 This is a noteworthy instance of the manner in which local circumstances often affect the habits of a species. 

 A more unlikely place to find this skulking Plover than the roof of a mosque can scarcely be imagined. 



The flesh of this bird is excellent eating. The young, according to some observers, appear to be 

 helpless and unable to run until quite fledged ; but this apparent incapability must be merely the result of 

 an inherent habit of crouching to escape observation. Captain Marshall mentions finding a young bird, which 

 was nearly fledged and able to walk about, squatting on the nest, allowing him to catch it without moving. 

 In White's ' History of Selborne ' we read that the young run immediately from the eggs, and are " withdrawn 

 to some flinty field by the dam, where they skulk among the stones, which are their best security ; for their 

 leathers are so exactly of the colour of our grey spotted flints that the most exact observer, unless he catches 

 the eye of the young bird, may be eluded." 



Nidification. — The breeding-time of this species in Ceylon is, I think, the months of July and August 

 on the east coast; but I did not succeed in finding their eggs when I met with the pair above spoken of. In 

 India the majority, says Mr. Hume, lay in April, but eggs may be found from February till August. Con- 

 cerning its nidification he writes as follows: — "According to my experience in Upper India, the place of all 

 others in which they love to breed is some huge old mango-tope in which the trees are not very thick, 

 surrounded by a good high mud bank, and of which the grass is strictly preserved by some native gentleman 

 for the use of his cattle towards the close of the hot weather, when all other grass has disappeared. In such 

 a grove I found thirteen nests, and saw at least fifty birds, many of which had not apparently yet lain. 

 The nest is a mere hollow scooped out by the birds, very often iu the midst of a layer of dead leaves, generally 

 quite unlincd, occasionally with a few blades of grass doing duty as lining. If the nest is out in an open 

 place it is generally more or less concealed at the base of some bush or tuft of grass ; but if in a grove it 

 is generally not far from some large root of one of the mango-trees in the midst of dead leaves, and these 

 so harmonize with the colour of the eggs that no further concealment is necessary. A dozen times I have passed 

 over, all but treading on eggs thus placed, and which I was eagerly looking for. Two is the ordinary number 

 of eggs laid, but I have found three in a nest half a dozen times. I should guess that in about one in 

 ten nests three eggs occur." 



The eggs of the " Thicknee" are very large for the size of the bird. Some arc almost perfect ovals in 

 shape, while others are longer and more pointed at the small end. They are yellowish stone-colour, some 

 with a grey hue and others with a brown. The markings are streaky or irregular angular blotches and clouds 



