GAME SJRDS AND WILD FOWL. 311 



return migration begins in March and continues into April. 

 Birds which breed in the highest Arctic Hmits of the European 

 range of this species do not appear to pass our islands at all ; 

 those that winter with us breed in Scandinavia most probably ; 

 those that pass later in spring through Central Europe nest in 

 Northern Russia. Jack Snipes arrive in India as a rule at the 

 end of September or early in October, and leave later than the 

 Common Snipe, in April and May. Middendorff noted their 

 arrival in North Siberia on the 8th of June. The Jack Snipe 

 frequents almost precisely the same kind of haunts as its larger 

 ally, but it is frequently found in much smaller bogs. A few 

 square yards of marshy ground, provided there is cover and a 

 snug corner in which to nestle, will content a Jack Snipe ; and 

 haunts that are tenary;ed one year are invariably filled the next, 

 either by the same bird, if it is fortunate enough to escape the 

 sportsman, or by another individual that in some strange manner 

 only known to themselves becomes aware that the eligible haunt 

 is vacant. Jack Snipes migrate at night, obtain much of their 

 food by night, and change their ground^say when frozen out 

 during continued frosts — at the same time. It is always a mystery 

 to me how these birds can spot a tiny bog in the darkness when 

 newly arrived in this country ; the sense that guides them must 

 be one totally unknown to man. The Jack Snipe at all times is 

 a very solitary species, but whether it migrates in company is 

 entirely unknown to me. If the birds do journey together (and 

 Hume seems to infer that they do) they must separate at once ; 

 and though many may be flashed from one bog, each seems con- 

 cerned with its own affairs. It is a skulking bird enough, and 

 usually remains squatting close in the herbage, often behind a 

 tuft, until nearly trodden under foot. When put up it flies at 

 first in a very unsteady manner, but after going some distance the 

 flight becomes steadier, and the bird pitches again almost directly. 

 It may be flushed time after time in this manner, as it is one of 

 the easiest birds to mark down. Much has been said about the 

 difficulty of shooting Jack Snipe ; but if the gunner can only 

 control himself, and wait until the critical moment, when the 

 zigzag flight is changed into a steadier course, and which usually 

 happens when the bird is just about a nice distance from the gun, 



