202 Order XIII 



fenny or boggy ground for insect-food are characteristics 

 inseparably connected with the Common Snipe {Gal- 

 linago gallinago), which is distributed in suitable places 

 throughout the United Kingdom. The erratic flight is 

 a source of great trouble to young shooters, who are 

 neither quick enough to fire at the exact moment that 



Common Snipe 



a bird rises, nor experienced enough to let it settle to 

 a steady pace. Snipe are very closely connected with 

 Woodcock, are equally long-billed, and are addicted to 

 a similar diet, but they are much smaller and are 

 constantly seen in companies or "wisps," which rise at 

 considerable distances. On the other hand, a single 

 Snipe Ij^ng hidden in grass may sometimes be touched 



