450 HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS 



One near Ballinaliincli, co. Down, Nov. 1, 1883 : Field, Nov. 



10, 1883. In the collection of Mr. H. Blake Knox. 

 One, Ballyronan Moss, near Magherafelt, co. Londonderry, 



Oct. 1889 : Patterson, Zoo?., 1890, p. 24 

 One, Maddenstown Bog, co. Kildare, Oct. 31, 1889 : 



Scharff, Zool, 1890, p. 26. In tlie Museum of Science 



and Art, Dublin. 

 One, Maddenstown Bog, co. Kildare, Feb. 20, 1891: 



Williams, Zool, 189li p. 218. 



Ohs. This bird is the Ardea lentiginosa, Montagu, 

 " Orn. Diet. Suppl." (1813) ; Ardea minor, Wilson, 

 "Am. Orn.," vol. viii. p. 35, PI. Ixv. (1814). I have 

 compared the type of Montagu's lentiginosa with 

 specimens of minor from North America, and find 

 them to be in every respect identical. Bonaparte 

 was mistaken in supposing them to be distinct 

 ("Geogr. and Comp. List," 1838, p. 48). As distin- 

 guished from the European stellaris, the American 

 species is much smaller in size, with smaller and 

 more slender legs and feet, and invariably has the 

 primaries of a uniform leaden-brown colour, while 

 in stellaris the same feathers are broadly barred 

 across both webs with buff. This last peculiarity 

 will at all times serve to distinguish the species. 



A good account of it is given by Mr. Endicott in 

 the American Naturalist, vol. iii. p. 169, and some 

 remarks on its habits in confinement, as observed by 

 Dr. Shufeldt, will be found Zool, 1893, p. 228. It 

 is remarkable that although the American Bittern 

 has been procured about a dozen times in Ireland, 

 in no instance has it been met with on the west 

 coast, where, if migrating directly from America, it 



