188 AKDEIDiE. 



dark green ; sides of face and ear-coverts deep chestnut, with a black 

 line running from the gape to the ear-coverts, and succeeded by 

 another line of buffy whitish along the upper edge of the cheeks ; 

 throat white slightly tinged with rufous ; sides of neck and the 

 feathers covering the hind-neck purplish chestnut with a decided 

 gloss of grey, the feathers in the centre of the throat as well as the 

 long feathers on the fore-neck streaked with black and white, the 

 main colour of the feathers being whitish with broad oval marks of 

 black in the centre, the long feathers of the fore-neck strongly tinged 

 with rufous ; the remainder of the under surface of the body from 

 the chest downwards slaty gre)-, including the under wing-coverts 

 and axillaries ; the abdomen a trifle lighter, as also the under tail- 

 coverts, the long ones of which have dark-green centres near the 

 ends ; thighs light ashy with a rusty tinge ; marginal coverts round 

 the bend of the wing white tinged with rufous : " bill greenish black 

 above, bright yellow beneath ; feet greenish yellow, claws dusky ; 

 iris and bare part about the eye bright yellow " {J. J. Audubon). 

 Total length 12'5 inches, culmen 2-45, wing 7, tail 2-5, tarsus 2-05, 

 middle toe and claw 2-1. 



Adult female. Similar to the male, but with the grey colour of 

 the ornamental plumes not quite so strongly developed. Total 

 length about 12'5 inches, culmen 2-7, wing 7'5, tail 2-1, tarsus 1*9, 

 middle toe and claw 2*2. 



Adidts in winter j^lumage are distinguished by having the sides of 

 the face and neck much more chestnut than in the breeding-season. 

 They have also the long plumes of the back entirely green. The 

 beautiful shade of grej- and the purplish bloom on the neck-feathers 

 are only assumed for the breeding-season. 



From the description above given it will be seen that I do not 

 recognize the two races of Green Heron, which have been called by 

 Mr. Brewster B. frazari and B. hahamensis. B. frazari seems to me 

 to have been founded on birds in full breeding-plumage, which have 

 not lost the purplish and " glaucous " lustre which appears to be 

 pecviliar to birds killed in the early part of the year. Brewster 

 further separates B. hahamensis on account of its chestnut colour, 

 but this similar tint of rufous is exhibited by specimens killed in 

 winter, in various places, such as Mexico, Guatemala, St. Croix, &c. 

 Mr. Ridgway's B. saturatus is said to be a larger bird than B. vires- 

 cens, but I greatly doubt its specific distinctness from the typical 

 form. 



Young birds are much duller in colour than the adults, and are of 

 a more oily-green, the feathers of the crown streaked with rufous, 

 and the wing-coverts margined with the same colour, the median 

 and greater series with a triangular spot of white at the tip, the 

 under surface of body white or yellowish white, the throat entirely 

 so, but the lower throat, fore-neck, and chest longitudinally streaked 

 with blackish ; the quills have more distinct white tips than in the 

 adult birds. 



In the first winter plumage of the young birds there is a general 

 similarity to the colour of the adults, but the back, though it has 



