black, edged with pale brown ; primary quill-feiathers dusky-
black; secondaries the same, but ending in a white point;
tertials brownish-blaek, spotted and streaked with rich reddish
brown ; upper tail-coverts brown, edged with buff; tail-
feathers twelve, greyish-black margined with brown : tbs
central ones elongated; cheeks, chin, and neck, greyish-
brown, spotted with darker brown; breast, belly,- and -vent
white ; legs and toes dark greenish-brown; claws'black.
The whole. length is eight'inches to 'eight'inches and a
half; the length of the beak one inch and’a half ;• from the
carpal joint to the end of the first quill-feather, which is fthe
longest, four inches and three-eighths, s
Females are on the” average a trifle - larger in-"size than the
males, but not so bright in their colours. In the-plumage ‘óf
winter the reddish-brown parts are more inclined to ash-grey.
Young birds have not the brilliant •'green and purple'reflections
observable in old birds. The' nestling is of' a—still
richer brown than that of the Common Snipe'already figured,
and the bill is, shorter, higher, and broader, at the-base'.
Varieties in this species are very uncommon, but a melanism
is recorded by Mr. F.’Bond (Zool. 1862, p. 8000) as
having been shot near- 'Staines. ;
. The differences in theemarginationof- the breast-bone- in
the Jack, and in the Common Snipe, are shown below-.’
M a c ro r h am phu s ' ö r isÈu s '(G-melin
THE BED-BREASTED .SNIPE. -
MacroJ'ïftdïïiphus ‘ grisews. Z
Maoroehamphtts, LeaeTi b —B»eak ^lpng, straight, y o p d ed , rather slender in
the fmddle^lie tip dilated, slightly incurved .and^ugoge," N ^ t|jls ;lateral, basal.
Legs with'four-toe^ ,toes conjLect§d_ at their base by a membra^1;
Vi^Ar töe I^chmglthe ground ftnly at the tip.; Inwjcpart of t h e ^ i a naked.
Wings long and pointed..' Tail-feathers twelve in nju^bfir,:
' The B e d -b r e a s t e d or Brown Snipe is an American
Species which was first made known as a straggler to Britain
by50tflonel Montagu, who described^ it in his Ornithological
Dictionary, and gave a figure of it in its winter plumage in
his Supplement. This example, which was killed in Devonshire
in' the month of October, is preserved in the British
Museum,. According to Dr., Edward Moore (Mag. Nat. Hist.
£887, p. 32T)', a second Devonshire example is in thé collection
of Mr. Drew* J A-young bird;jps,shot near Carlisle on
* Scoloi(iX^j'isea,^(S^^i^, 6,5,8
Cat. Mamm. and Bïrds^Brit. Mus.