230 



CURSORES. 



those birds which are always conspicuous for the per- 

 fect whiteness of their plumage ; but of all the spe- 

 cies, this is probably gifted with a coat of the most 



delicate and beauti- 

 ful texture. The 

 head is ornamented 

 with a long, flow- 

 ing crest, composed 

 of fine thread-like 

 plumes. Upon the 

 lower part of the 

 neck the feathers 

 are lengthened, and 

 hang down in what 

 might be called a 

 loose beard-like tuft, 

 while from the up- 

 per part of the back 

 proceed a number of 

 j on g s l en der plumes 

 of lace-like delicacy, extending over the rump and 

 turning upward at the extremity, the fine filaments 

 hanging from the shafts like the hair from the tail 

 of a bobtailed horse. 



This beautiful bird seems to give the preference to 

 the salt marshes, which line the coast from Maine to 

 Florida. Here, during the breeding season, they are 

 generally abundant; and, as is the custom of the 

 Herons, their nests are clustered together in commu- 

 nities of greater or less numbers, according to cir- 

 cumstances. In New Jersey, the cedars which gen- 



Heron. 



