SEMIPALMATED SNIPE. nV 
land side, such as Crows, Jays, weasels, foxes, minxes and man 
himself, that these affectionate tribes have most to dread. 
The Willet subsists chiefly on small shell-fish, marine worms, 
and other aquatic insects, in search of which it regularly resorts 
to the muddy shores, and flats, at low water; its general ren- 
dezvous being the marshes. 
This bird has a summer, and also a winter, dress, in its co- 
lours differing so much in these seasons as scarcely to appear to 
be the same species. Our figure in the plate exhibits it in its 
spring and summer plumage, which in a good specimen is as 
follows: 
Length fifteen inches, extent thirty inches; upper parts dark 
olive brown, the feathers streaked' down the centre and crossed 
with waving lines of black;' wing-coverts light olive ash; the 
whole upper parts sprinkled with touches of dull yellowish 
white; primaries black, white at the root half; secondaries white, 
bordered with brown; rump dai'k brown; tail rOunded, twelve 
feathers, pale olive, waved with bars of black; tail-coverts white, 
barred with Olive; bill pale lead colour, becoming black towards 
the tip; eye very black; chin white; breast beautifully mottled 
with transverse spots of olive, on a cream ground; belly and 
vent white, the last barred with olive; legs and feet pale lead 
colour; toes half- webbed. 
Towards the Fall, when these birds associate in large flocks, 
they become of a pale dun colour above, the plumage being 
shafted with dark brown, and the tail white, or nearly so. At 
this season they are extremely fat, and esteemed excellent eat- 
ing. Experienced gunners always select the lightest coloured 
ones from a flock, as being uniformly the fattesh 
The female of this species is generally larger than the male 
In the months of October and November they gradually disap- 
pear. 
