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NATURAL HISTORY. 



Sub-family c. . Ardcince. 



ABDEA. 



Cinerea, the Heron. 



The HERON, or HERNE, is a bird renowned in the noble 

 science of falconry, and respecting which much curious know- 

 ledge is to be gained from the work of Dame Juliana Berners, 

 a book of most amusingly quaint language. The Common 

 Heron generally breeds in numbers, like the rook ; indeed, 

 these two birds frequently inhabit contiguous trees, but never 

 interfere with each other. In the dawn of the early morning, 

 or while the moon casts an uncertain light, the Heron may be 

 seen standing in the shallow water, stiff an'd motionless, and 

 by the faint light may be mistaken for a stump of a tree. 

 But his eye is keenly directed 011 the water, and no sooner 

 does a fish approach, than a dart of his unerring bill secures 

 it, and the Heron soars exultingly to his nest, bearing his 



