THE GREAT SNIPE 



"It is not a shy bird, and may usually be approached within a few paces 

 distance ; and when it rises it flies but a short distance and drops again. . . . 

 During the pairing season the habits of this bird are very peculiar; for it has a 

 so-called 'Lek' or ' Spil,' like some of the Grouse tribe, a sort of meeting place, 

 where they collect to 'drum,' and often engage in combat for the possession of the 

 females : and in this respect it differs widely from its allies ; for it does not engage 

 in aerial evolutions, but remains on the ground. Though its habits are so peculiar 

 at this season, they are, comparatively speaking, seldom observed, as its note, or 

 song as it may be called, is very low in tone. . . . 



"The drumming place (Spil-plads) is usually in some damp place in the 

 marsh, where there is water between the tussocks ; and the number of pairs 

 resorting to the same drumming place is usually eight or ten, frequently less 

 and often more." 



This species is always distinguishable from our Common Snipe, not only by its 

 larger size, but in having sixteen, and occasionally eighteen, tail-feathers, instead of 

 the fourteen possessed by the latter. The tail has also a larger amount of white, 

 whilst the dark bars on the flanks are broader and more distinct. 



THE COMMON SNIPE. 

 Gallinago coelestis (Frenzel). 

 Plate 65. 



The Common Snipe breeds in localities suited to its marsh-loving habits 

 throughout the greater part of the British Islands, whilst in winter, especially 

 during severe weather, its numbers are much increased by birds reaching our 

 shores from the Continent of Europe. The Western Islands of Scotland are a 

 great resort of this species, where large bags have been obtained by sportsmen. In 

 the breeding season it has a wide range over northern and temperate Europe and 

 Asia, while later in the year many birds move southwards to warmer latitudes in 

 Africa and Asia. 



The nest is situated among tussocks of grass or rushes in wet ground, and 

 consists of a slight depression, with a scanty lining of withered grasses, and con- 

 tains four eggs, laid usually in April, which in colour are pale greenish-olive, 

 blotched with shades of brown. Late in the evening or at night the Snipe seeks 

 its feeding grounds among the bogs, probing the soft surface with its sensitive bill, 

 which is sometimes so deeply plunged that the mud may be found adhering to the 



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