338 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



shot on the Abbey Pool by F. R. Eodd in or about 1860 ; a 

 second was killed in 1863, and a third by Jenkinson on Bryher 

 in October, 1866. 



From the sportsman's point of view the Woodcock is naturally 

 one of the most important birds of the islands. It begins to 

 arrive some years in the second week of October, but the first 

 great flight usually comes in about the close of the month. By 

 the middle of January in most years it has become somewhat 

 scarce, though during the severe winter of 1880-81 a considerable 

 number appeared in the last days of that month, and nearly fifty 

 couples were killed at a time when under ordinary circumstances 

 the shooting would have come to an end. The latest date on 

 which a stray specimen has been seen is March 1st. The biggest 

 bag for the season since 1856, when the Abbey game-book begins 

 its records, was four hundred and fifteen birds in 1878-79. In- 

 deed, on Nov. 5th that winter no less than forty were killed on 

 St. Martin's. The largest previous record for the season was 

 two hundred and twenty-three in 1860. In one or two seasons 

 the number has been under fifty. Gilbert White's story of his 

 friend killing twenty-six couples in one day within the walls of 

 the Garrison, St. Mary's, is by no means improbable, as the 

 Garrison Hill, with its covering of old furze, is still a sure find 

 for them. The Woodcocks at Scilly are mostly of the small dark 

 race. They are generally in good condition, but not very heavy. 

 Two examples of the Great Snipe have been obtained, and both 

 are still preserved. The first was shot by David Smith on Great 

 Ganilly in January, 1877, and the second between that date and 

 1879, but the record has been lost. The Common Snipe is not 

 known to have bred on the islands, though on several occasions 

 — as in 1856, 1865, and in 1901 — family parties have been seen 

 on St. Mary's in August. The wisps arrive almost invariably 

 during easterly winds ; in fact, any point to the east will bring 

 Snipe in late autumn and winter, and, as a rule, the stormier 

 the weather the more numerous will the arrivals be. As the 

 prevailing winds are westerly, the birds are often scarce for 

 weeks at a stretch, and the number naturally varies greatly from 

 season to season. It is astonishing sometimes how a slant of 

 wind from the east will in a few hours bring a bountiful supply 

 of Snipe to favoured spots that may have been deserted for a 



