Gulf of Bothnia, and they pass the Island of Malta twice yearly, in migrating across the Mediterranean. They fly in considerable flocks, and are well known upon the seacoasts in most parts, where, and in the marshes they frequent in winter, they feed on worms, frogs, and all kinds of marine insects. In summer they retire into mountainous and unfrequented parts, where they breed, and do not return again till the approach of winter. The Curlew has a long black bill, much curved, about eight fingers long, and beginning to bend a little downwards about three fingers from the head. The middle parts of the feathers on the head, neck, and back, are black; the borders ash coloured, with an intermixture of red; and those between the wings and back are of a beautiful glossy blue, shining like silk. The vent and belly are white. The feet are divided, but joined by a little membrane at the root. The female is somewhat larger than the male, which is commonly called the Jack Curlew, and the spots with which her body is covered almost all over, are more inclining to a red.

SNIPES are migratory birds, which are supposed to breed chiefly in the lower lands of Germany and Switzerland. They visit us in autumn, and retire in the

spring. Many, however, remain with us the whole year, and make their nests of dried grass and feathers, in the most inaccessible parts of marshes. One variety of this bird, of a smaller size, is called the JACK SNIPE. Their food consists of small worms, slugs, and the larva of insects. During the breeding season, while it plays over the moors, this bird makes a pleasing humming and piping sound. Their flesh is justly reckoned among feathered dainties..

From the point of the bill to the end of the tail, the Snipe measures about twelve inches, and from the point of each wing when extended, about fifteen or sixteen; the head is divided longways by a pale red line, parallel to which on each side is a black line, and over the eyes there runs another line pretty much of the same colour as that on the middle of the head. The feathers that spring from the shoulders reach almost as far as the end of the tail, the outward half from the shaft being of a pale red. The colours thus succeeding each other, make two lines down the back, the covert feathers of which are dusky with white transverse lines, and white tips on some of the large wing feathers, the lesser feathers being of a mixed colour of red, black, and gray, beautifully variegated with white and brown lines running across them. The bill is black at the tip, and near three inches long, the tongue is sharp, the eyes of a hazel colour. The legs are of a pale greenish colour, the toes pretty long, and the talons black.

About thirty years ago Snipes are said to have been so abundant in the fens of Cambridgeshire, that a single man, in one night, took as many of them with a lark net as were sufficient to fill a hamper.

The Jack Snipe has a more swift and direct flight than the common species. As it will not rise till it is almost trodden on, the French sportsmen give to it the appellation of la sourde, or deaf.

DURING the summer, the Woodcock inhabits and breeds in Norway, Sweden, Lapland, and other countries in the north; but on the commencement of the frost it begins to migrate southward. A few of these birds reach us in October, but the main body does not arrive till November or December; and they are often much exhausted by their journey. They have recently been more scarce in England, in consequence, it is supposed, of their eggs having become an article of luxury in Sweden. The greater part of them leave us at the close of February or the beginning of March, after having paired; but they are sometimes detained for a while longer by the wind being adverse.

The Woodcock is about as large as a pigeon, with a bill three inches long. The crown of the head and back of the neck are barred with black, and a black streak runs from the bill to the eyes. It flaps its wings with some noise when it rises, and its flight is pretty rapid, but neither high nor long; and its descent is so sudden that it seems to fall like a stone. It flies very straight in a wood of tall trees, but in a copse it is

often obliged to wind, and frequently drops behind bushes, to conceal itself from the eye of the fowler. It principally feeds on worms and insects, which it draws out of the mud with its long bill; and its flesh is universally admired. The female builds a rude nest on the ground, and generally lays four or five eggs. She is remarkably tame during incubation.

THIS bird weighs about five ounces and a half, and is twelve inches long. The bill is two inches, red at the base, and black towards the point. The head, neck, and scapulars are dusky ash colour, obscurely spotted with black: the back is white, spotted with black: the breast and belly are white, streaked with dusky lines. The tail is elegantly barred with black and white; and the legs, which are long, are of a bright orange colour, whence the bird derives its name. It breeds in fens and marshes, and the female lays four whitish eggs, tinged with olive, and marked, chiefly on the thicker end, with irregular black spots. When its nest is in danger it makes a noise somewhat similar to that of the lapwing. It is generally found single, never more than in pairs, and frequents most of

our shores. In the winter time it conceals itself in

the gutters.

The GREENSHANK is a bird of the same kind as the former, but about two inches longer; its habits, disposition, modes of subsistence, and colour are nearly the same; with the exception of its legs, which are green, from which circumstance it is named. They both feed by the seashores, and sides of large rivers.

THE LAPWING, OR PEEWIT.

THE Lapwing, or Bastard Plover, is about the size of a common pigeon, and is covered with very thick plumes, which are black at the roots, but of a different colour on the outward part. The feathers on the belly, thighs, and under the wings, are most of them white as snow and the under part on the outside of the wings white, but black lower. The back is of a dark green, glossed with blue shades. The head and crest are black, and the latter, which is composed of unwebbed feathers, is almost four inches in length. It has a great liver, divided into two parts, and, as some authors affirm, no gall.

Lapwings are found in most parts of Europe, as far northward as Iceland. In the winter they are met