90 
FRANK FORESTER’S FIELD SPORTS. 
five to six ounces, the female eight; the European twelve. The 
European Woodcock makes his first appearance in Britain in 
October and November, that country being, in fact, only its 
winter quarters ; for, early in March, they move off to the 
northern parts of the continent to breed. The American spe¬ 
cies, on the contrary, winters in countries south of the United 
States, arrives here early in March, extends its migration as &tr 
at least as the river St. Lawrence—breeds in all the intermediate 
places, and retires again to the South on the approach of winter. 
The one migrates from the torrid to the temperate regions—the 
other from the temperate to the Arctic. The two birds, there¬ 
fore, notwithstanding their names are the same, differ not only 
in size and markings, but also in native climate. Hence the ab¬ 
surdity of those who would persuade us that the Woodcock of 
America crosses the Atlantic to Europe, and vice versa. These 
observations have been thought necessary, from the respectability 
of some of our own writers, who seem to have adopted this opi¬ 
nion. How far to the North our Woodcock is found, I am un¬ 
able to say. It is not mentioned as a bird of Hudson’s Bay, and 
being altogether unknown in the Northern parts of Europe, it is 
very probable that its migrations do not extend to a very high 
latitude; for it may be laid down as a general rule, that those 
birds which migrate to the Arctic regions, in either continent, 
are very often common to both. The head of the Woodcock is 
of singular conformation—large, somewhat triangular, and the 
eye fixed at a remarkable distance from the bill, and high in the 
head. This construction was necessary to give a greater range 
of vision, and to secure the eye from injury while the owner is 
searching in the mire. The flight of the Woodcock is slow. 
When flushed at any time in the woods, he rises to the height 
of the bushes or underwood, and almost instantly drops behind 
them again at a short distance, generally running off for several 
yards as soon as he touches the ground. The notion that there 
are two species of Woodcock in this country, probably originated 
from the great difference of size between the male and female— 
the latter being considerably the larger. When taken, they ut* 
