930 Birds. 



exceedingly rapid. But at other times, its flight is as heavy and as 

 slow as that of the tawny owl. Now, the flight of the little black 

 cock is, I think, always uniformly rapid, or nearly so. But it is at 

 the rising of the two birds that the difference is most remarkable. The 

 black cock makes no noise. I am sure I have seen it rise when I 

 could not hear it ; quick as thought, with an uneven flight, nearly re- 

 sembling that of the snipe, it was gone before I could bring my gun 

 to my shoulder. While the muffed cock rises steadily from the ground 

 with as much noise sometimes as a hen pheasant, and at first, that is, 

 while rising to clear the covert, with a motion of the wings almost as 

 rapid. 



I offer these observations in the spirit of enquiry, in order to draw 

 the attention of sporting naturalists to the subject. My recollections 

 of the little black cock are of twenty years' standing : for the few wood- 

 cocks I have seen alive of late years have certainly all been the muff- 

 ed cocks. I therefore write with diffidence, and with the hope that 

 more competent persons will be able to set at rest this interesting 

 question. [See Zool. 903]. 



The Great Snipe I can ascertain to have been killed three times 

 only ; — once by Mr. F. Worsley, once by Mr. H. Dennett, and once 

 by Mr. Butler. 



The Common Snipe used to be found in much greater numbers 

 than it is now found. R. Loe tells of days when in Bordwood Forest 

 he exhausted his powder-flask snipe-shooting ; of nights, when he 

 formed one of a party netting snipes in the marshes ; and has showed 

 me spots, wherefrom, on the report of his gun, a hundred have taken 

 wing. But these are stories of the olden time. Drainage and culti- 

 vation have doubtless done much for the country, but not for snipes, 

 or snipe-shooters ; unless, perchance, they have driven the former to 

 parts where the latter are not of the quality of R. Loe, who " looks 

 right" too certainly to give a chance to either snipe or anything else 

 that comes within range of his barrels. 



I have on two occasions found snipes on the sea-shore in hard wea- 

 ther. On the setting in of frost the number of snipes greatly increases; 

 but after about the third night they disappear, crossing to the conti- 

 nent, as I imagine. Snipes vary greatly, both in size and colour. 

 Whether the larger be only the older birds, or are strictly or properly 

 varieties, I am not competent to say. The difference in size is cer- 

 tainly great : of two birds, killed the same day, one weighed five and 

 a quarter ounces, and the other only three and a quarter ; and yet the 

 smaller bird was the plumper. Mr. Butler informs me he has known 



