NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 141 



The only note I have heard uttered by the American egret is a 

 loud, hoarse croak on a low key. Doctor Chapman (1908a) refers to 

 it as a "rapid cvk^ cuk, cuk with the regularity and persistence of a 

 metronome." 



Unlike some other herons, the American egrets do not feed at night, 

 but resort regularly to certain favorite roosting places where large 

 numbers often congregate. They gather at the roosting places just 

 before dark, spend the night in the trees, and scatter out over the sur- 

 rounding country early in the morning. I once saw such a roosting 

 place in Texas. We had been hunting all day for a white ibis rook- 

 ery and had driven down, just before dark, to look at a button-willow 

 swamp where we thought it might be. We were delighted to see 

 that the trees, which were standing in about 2 feet of water and were 

 surrounded by open water, were covered with birds, American egrets, 

 snowy egrets, and little blue herons. It was a wonderful sight when 

 they all flew up, at our appoach. It was too dark to investigate it 

 further that night, but we had visions of some great chances for photo- 

 graphs the next day. We were disappointed, however, on our return 

 the next morning, to find it practically deserted ; only a few scatter- 

 ing birds remained, which promptly flew away. It was a night roost- 

 ing place in an old rookery. 



Audubon (1840), Maynard (1896), and Chapman (1892) all refer 

 to this roosting habit. Audubon (1840) %vrites: 



The American egrets are much attached to their roosting places, to which they 

 remove from their feeding grounds regularly about an hour before the last ghmpse 

 of day; and I can not help expressing my disbelief in the vulgar notion of birds 

 of this family usually feeding by night, as I have never observed them so doing 

 even in countries where thej' were most abundant. Before sunset the egrets and 

 other herons (excepting perh.apa the bitterns and night herons) leave their feed- 

 ing grounds in small flocks, often composed of only a single family, and proceed 

 on wing in the most direct course, at a moderate height, to some secure retreat 

 more or less distant, according to the danger they may have to guard against. 

 Flock after flock may be seen repairing from all quarters to these places of repose, 

 which one may readily discover by observing their course. Approach and watch 

 them. Some hundreds have reached the well-known rendezvous. After a few 

 gratulations you see them lower their bodies on the stems of the trees or bushes 

 on which they have alighted, fold their necks, place their heads beneath the 

 scapular feathers, and adjust themselves for repose. Daylight returns and they 

 are all in motion. The arrangement of their attire is not more neglected by them 

 than by the most fashionable fops, but they spend less time at the toilet. Their 

 rough notes are uttered more loudly than in the evening, and after a very short 

 lapse of time they spread their snowy pinions and move, in different directions, 

 to search for fiddlers, fish, insects of all sorts, small quadrupeds or birds, snails, 

 and reptiles, all of which form the food of this species. 



Doctor Chapman (1892) refers to a roosting tree in Cuba as follows: 



There was a flock of about 20 of these birds at San Pablo which came each 

 night to roost in a tree at the border of the river. They appeared in a body with 



