250 WOODCOCK. 



and a half ; forehead, line over the eye, and whole lower 

 parts, reddish tawny ; sides of the neck, inclining to ash ; 

 between the eye and bill, a slight streak of dark brown ; 

 crown, from the forepart of the eye backwards, black, crossed 

 by three narrow bands of brownish white ; cheeks, marked 

 with a bar of black, variegated with light brown ; edges of 

 the back and of the scapulars, pale bluish white ; back and 

 scapulars, deep black, each feather tipt or marbled with light 

 brown and bright ferruginous, with numerous fine zigzag lines 

 of black crossing the lighter parts ; quills, plain dusky brown ; 

 tail, black, each feather marked along the outer edge with 

 small spots of pale brown, and ending in narrow tips, of a pale 

 drab colour above, and silvery white below ; lining of the 

 wing, bright rust ; legs and feet, a pale reddish flesh colour ; 

 eye, very full and black, seated high and very far back in the 

 head ; weight, five ounces and a half, sometimes six. 



The female is twelve inches long, and eighteen in extent ; 

 weighs eight ounces ; and differs also in having the bill very 

 near three inches in length : the black on the back is not quite 

 so intense, and the sides under the wings are slightly barred 

 with dusky. 



The young woodcocks of a week or ten days old are 

 covered with down of a brownish white colour, and are marked 

 from the bill along the crown to the hind head with a broad 

 stripe of deep brown ; another line of the same passes through 

 the eyes to the hindhead, curving under the eye ; from the 

 back to the rudiments of the tail, runs another of the same 

 tint, and also on the sides under the wings ; the throat and 

 breast are considerably tinged with rufous ; and the quills at 

 this age are just bursting from their light blue sheaths, and 

 appear marbled, as in the old birds ; the legs and bill are of a 

 pale purplish ash colour, the latter about an inch long. When 

 taken, they utter a long, clear, but feeble peep, not louder 

 than that of a mouse. They are far inferior to young par- 

 tridges in running and skulking ; and, should the female 

 unfortunately be killed, may easily be taken on the spot. 



