MR. J. H. GURNEY, JUN., ON THE NIGHTJAR. 77 
The following is a biography of some young Nightjars at 
Xorthrepps, conveniently placed for making observations. On 
July 26th, 1882, a Nightjar was found at Northrepps sitting 
on two eggs, one of which she had laid that morning ; and the 
cock was close by. On August 1st, owing to the rain, the hen 
was very wet, but the eggs were quite dry ; they were either 
almost or quite touching each other. On the 7th, the eggs had 
been moved further apart. On the 9th, the eggs, the obtuse ends 
of which had always been towards the Nightjar’s tail, were moved 
a little, and one of them pointed the other way. 
Hitherto the hen had always sat facing the cast. On the 13th 
she had turned round, and the young were hatched ; but she only 
covered one of them, the other was quite exposed. The old cock 
jarred but little, and that principally about 7.30. If the young 
Fig. 2. 
were taken up, the cock probably flew round uttering a low 
cry of alarm, but the hen seemed quite silent. The cock’s 
white spots Avere just distinguishable at 7.45. On the 14th it 
was observed that one of the young had a deformed neck, 
and was smaller than the other. The hen was still on at 7.30 ; 
she pretended to be wounded, and then made a hissing noise, 
sitting crossways upon a bough with tail spread (Fig. 3). The 
ordinary position is lengthways on a bough as in Fig. 4. 
On the 15th one of the young was dead, and the other was moved 
five feet, a distance which it clearly could not have run, it being 
only two days old. On the 16th it had again moved two feet, and 
on the 20th it had moved fourteen feet more. On September 2nd 
the young one, now seven days old, was back in its old place ; 
to get there it must have passed either under or over a considerable 
