Philohela minor. 
C*"' 
April I3^)Lexington, ^JTo Davis's Hill with Faxon at 6.30 p.m. 
Evening clear and. i Mi ther. 60° at sunset, 62® at npon) with light 
west wind changing to S .W. just after sunset. The Woodcock began 
peeping at 6.44(last night he began at 6.30 and night before 
last at 6.40, both of these evenings being cloudy. — Faxon . ) 
He continued peeping nine minutes before making his first as- 
cent, and made in all six ascents. ( fax on noted fifteen as- 
cents one evening last week.) Two f lights, which I timed from 
the start to the finish, lasted respectively 57 and 59 sec- 
onds, the song II and 12 seconds respectively. During the 
first ascent I ran to the peeping -pi ace and sat down on the 
ground behind a large rock. The bird alighted on a little 
knoll covered with reindeer moss just nine paces from me. Theee 
was absolutely nothing between us, the rock being in front of 
me and the Woodcock on my right. Dor a moment he stood mo- 
tionless and silent, then began peeping. I turned one quar- 
ter around so as to face him, at the same time raising my 
glass. He evidently saw me, for he stopped peeping and ut- 
tered the pt-ul a number of times in succession, but soon after 
I had settled myself in the new position r he began peeping a- 
gain and showed no further signs of alarm or suspicion, for 
some time he stood facing the south, his right side turned 
squarely towards me, giving me a profile view. The light was 
still good and thrown directly upon him(he was to the east 
of my position). Through the glass I could distinctly see 
his color and markings, the large dark eye; the bill, feet — 
in short, every detail of form and plumage. In the intervals 
between the notes, his position, outline and the relative 
proportions of the different parts presented nothing pecul- 
iar. The body was held a little more erect than usual, the 
back rounded, the head raised, the bill inclined well down- 
ward, the tail depressed and closed, its tip just showing be- 
low the ends of the closed wings. There was 
the throat, jugulum or breast, no ruffing of 
short the bird looked in every way precisely 
ventional stuffed Woodcock that one sees in 
shops . 
At each utterance of the paap the neck was slightly 
lengthened, the head thrown upward and b ac kwar d ( much in the 
manner of a Least Flycatcher's while singing), the bill 
pened wide and raised to a horizontal position, the 
jerked out from the body. All these movements were 
no inflation of 
the plumage. In 
like the con- 
taxidermists’* 
o- 
w ings 
ab rup t 
