312 THE GAME BIRDS AND WILD FOWL 



a moderate marksman should rarely miss. The Jack Snipe 

 whilst with us is remarkably silent, and never, so far as my 

 experience goes, utters a sound as it rises, nor is the whirr of its 

 wings very perceptible. As Hume very aptly remarks, the 

 favourite haunt of a Jack Snipe is a corner ; the bird loves a cosy 

 nook in which to nestle, a sheltered secluded spot where the cover 

 is ample and where there is just enough bog to ensure a comfort- 

 able living. In such a retreat a Jack Snipe will remain the entire 

 winter through — unless it is shot, of course. The food of this 

 species consists of worms, insects and their larvae, shells and 

 crustaceans, and a considerable amount of vegetable substances, 

 such as small seeds, bits of green weed, club-moss, and grass. 

 In the manner of its search for food the Jack Snipe resembles its 

 congeners. During the heat of the day this Snipe keeps very 

 close and sleeps; but it has been shot in the absolute act of 

 feeding rather late in the morning and long before sunset. The 

 flesh of the Jack Snipe is excellent, and even in very severe 

 weather, when Common Snipe have been woefully out of condi- 

 tion, I have remarked that Jack Snipe continue to remain as 

 plump and fat as ever. 



Nidificatiou. — It is rather remarkable that so little has been 

 recorded of the breeding habits of the Jack Snipe. Every writer 

 has to depend upon the information gathered by Wolley, and 

 this in a great measure is meagre and vague. It would be 

 interesting to hear the accounts of other naturalists. The Jack 

 Snipe begins to breed towards the end of June. Wolley found 

 the first nest on the 17 th of that month, and four others on 

 the 1 8 th. From his account we are left in ignorance as to 

 whether the male bird drums like the Common Snipe during the 

 nesting season ; indeed, the facts appear to be against it. He 

 describes the bird careering about the air 'over the marshes of 

 Muonioniska, uttering a sound like the distant canter of a horse 

 over a hard road. This evidently refers to the nofe, which is 

 compared by Naumann to the clicking of the death-watch beetle, 

 and undoubtedly not to drumming or bleating. He found the 

 nests placed in dry spots amongst the sedge and grass close to 

 the borders of the more open swamps. They were mere hollows 

 lined with a little dry grass, equisetum, and dead withered leaves 



