The Ardea stellaris botaurus, or bitour is also common and esteemed the better dish. In the belly of one I found a frog in an hard frost at christmas. another I kept in a garden 2 yeares feeding it with fish mice and frogges, in defect whereof making a scrape for sparrowes and small birds, the bitour made shifft to maintaine herself upon them.
Bistardæ or Bustards are not vnfrequent in the champain and feildie part of this country a large Bird accounted a dayntie dish, obseruable in the strength of the brest bone and short heele layes an egge much larger then a Turkey.
Morinellus or Dotterell about Thetford and the champain which comes vnto us in September and March staying not long, and is an excellent dish.
There is also a sea dotterell somewhat lesse butt better coloured then the former.
Godwyts taken chiefly in marshland, though other parts not without them accounted the dayntiest dish in England and I think for the bignesse, of the biggest price.
Gnats or Knots a small bird which taken with netts grow excessively fatt. If being mewed and fed with corne a candle lighted in the roome they feed day and night, and when they are at their hight of fattnesse they beginne to grow lame and are then killed or as at their prime and apt to decline.
Erythropus or Redshanck a bird common in the marshes and of common food butt no dayntie dish.
A may chitt a small dark gray bird litle bigger then a stint of fatnesse beyond any. It comes in May into marshland and other parts and abides not aboue a moneth or 6 weekes.
Another small bird somewhat larger than a stint called a churre and is commonly taken amongst them.
Stints in great numbers about the seashore and marshes about Stifkey Burnham and other parts.