A MARSH WALK IN MAY 



19 



round, and at times coming right overhead within 

 shot, it endeavours by every artifice to divert our 

 attention and lead us away from the spot where its 

 eggs or young are lying. The ground is still very 

 bare, and there is little or no nest ; the eggs are 

 therefore not very hard to find, if the birds are first 

 watched from a distance. Those who make a 



THE REDSHANK. 



business of collecting "Plovers' eggs" for the 

 market, and whose eyes are well trained to the 

 work, have a wonderful knack of marking the 

 precise position of a nest from a distance after 

 watching the birds, and walking straight to it. 

 To do this, however, requires some practice ; the 

 eye must be steadfastly kept upon the spot once 

 marked, heedless of all the attempted distractions 



