180 
NATURAL HISTORY 
WOODCOCK. 
The Woodcock is somewhat less than a 
partridge. The upper side of the body is 
partly coloured of red, black, and grey, very 
beautiful to the sight. From the bill almost 
to the middle of the head, it is of a reddish 
nslf colour; the breast and belly are grey, 
with transverse brown lines; and the chin 
is white, with a tincture of yellow. Wood- 
cocks are birds of passage, coming over into 
this country in autumn, and departing again 
in the beginning of spring; yet they pair 
before they go, Hying two together, a male 
and a female. They chiefly frequent moist 
woods and rivulets, near hedges. Although 
these birds are not at all eaten in Sweden 
and some other parts of Europe, yet their 
flesh is much esteemed in this country. 
