312 THE BIRDS OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



of that art, and does not approve of enclosures ; this 

 we take to be the reason of the scarcity of the species 

 in many parts of our Islands in which it was formerly 

 abundant, but it is still to be found pretty certainly 

 in summer and early autumn in many parts of the 

 fen country, and till very recently was abundant on a 

 property of ours in South-west Lancashire in districts 

 drained and reclaimed from the bog, or " moss," as it 

 is locally termed, within the memory of living men. 

 In this locality a few Quails always remained through- 

 out the winter, as we have reason to believe is 

 generally the case in those parts of Europe in which 

 the bird breeds, although the great bulk of the 

 species migrate southwards on the approach of 

 winter ; this being their habit, it is somewhat difficult 

 to give dates of arrival and departure with any 

 approach to accuracy, particularly in the instance of 

 the Quail, which, in this country at least, is pretty 

 certain to be heard in the spring before it is seen, 

 but we should consider that the principal arrival of 

 Quails takes place in England in the third and fourth 

 weeks of April, and that the majority are gone by the 

 beginning of November. The cry or love-call of the 

 male Quail consists of three shrill notes, which may 

 be rendered as " whut we whee," with a strong 

 sibilant accent on the first syllable : " wet my lips " 

 is a common rendering of the sound into words, and 

 perhaps as near the original as our language permits. 

 The Quail, in common with many terrestrial birds, is 

 a powerful ventriloquist, and we have often heard a 

 caged bird of this species calling within a few feet of 

 us, and conveying the impression of a distance -of 

 many yards. The note of the female consists of 

 two low short notes repeated three or four times in 



