CATALOGUE OF BIRDS. 259 



over some bed of seaweed which is gradually becom- 

 ing covered by the incoming tide, closes both wings 

 when within twelve to fifteen feet of its prey, and 

 drops like a stone into little open places amongst 

 the seaweed, and I may almost say never fails to 

 bring up a small fish or sand-eel in its bill. It is a 

 pretty sight, too, to see these Terns when they 

 know they have made some miscalculation how 

 quickly they recover themselves, just touching the 

 water without plunging in and ascending again in 

 a gentle sort of sweep. 



There are many about the western islands of Scot- 

 land, one or two of which are exclusively taken up by 

 them for breeding purposes. It was on such an one 

 as these about twenty miles out of Oban that my 

 companion B — whom you will find mentioned in 

 connection with the steam-launch I hired from Oban 

 on one occasion — and I managed to get the speci- 

 mens you see in the case ; there were any number 

 of birds there. 



Both species have a very wide distribution abroad. 



CASE 57» 



THE HERON. 



Order, Herodiones. Family, ArdeidcB. 



This species may be said to be fairly well dis- 

 tributed over our British Islands in localities suitable 

 to its habits, such as estuaries and creeks of the sea, 

 freshwater pools, and marsh lands. 



