163 



HERODIONES. 



ARDEIDiE. 



A B DEI DM. 



Ardea cinerea, Linnaeus.* 

 THE COMMON HERON. 



Ardea cinerea. 



Ardea, -Br/ssont. — Beak long, strong, straight, compressed in a lengthened 

 cone ; upper mandible slightly channelled, ridge rounded. Nostrils lateral, basal, 

 pierced longitudinally in the groove, and half closed by a membrane. Legs 

 long, slender, naked above the tarsal joint. Tarsi scutellate in front. Toes 

 three in front, the outer united to the middle one by a distinct membrane ; one 

 toe behind, directed inwards : claws long, compressed, sharp, the middle claw 

 pectinated on the inside. Wings of moderate size ; the second quill feather the 

 longest in the wing. Tail of twelve feathers, short, nearly even. 



• Syst. Nat. Ed 

 f Ornithologie, 



12, i. p. 236 (1766). 

 r. p. 391 (1760). 



