THE SQUACCO HEROIsr. 85 



webs or at the tips. In very young birds the tail is also 

 washed with brown near the end. 



Range in Great Britain. — A rare visitor, generally in immature 

 or winter plumage, seldom in full dress. As, however, the 

 occurrences have mostly taken place in spring or summer, the 

 arrival of the specimens in winter plumage, as may be deduced 

 from Mr. Howard Saunders' remarks in the " Manual," tends 

 to prove the truth of my surmise that Squacco Herons come 

 mostly in their winter plumage, and that they assume their 

 breeding-plumage after they have arrived. Over forty examples 

 of this Heron are said to have been obtained in the British 

 Islands, most of them having occurred in the southern and 

 eastern counties of England. Scotland provides two instances 

 and Ireland three. 



Range outside the British Islands. — The Squacco only visits 

 Northern Germany and Northern France as a straggler, but in 

 Central Europe and the Mediterranean countries it breeds in 

 suitable localities. Its westward range extends to Mesopo- 

 tamia and the Persian Gulf in winter, but it is found through- 

 out Africa, partly as a breeding-species, partly as a winter 

 viiitant. In Madagascar, A. idse appears to take its place. 



Habits. — In Spain, the Squacco Heron, according to Colonel 

 Irby, is entirely migratory, and arrives during the month of 

 April. He has never seen them following cattle, like the next 

 species. 



The food of the Squacco is decidedly varied, and consists 

 of fish, mice, shrews, &c., as well as frogs, water-insects, 

 molluscs, and small Crustacea. Mr. Eagle Clarke gives a 

 most interesting account of a visit to the marshes of Slavonia, 

 where he found this species breeding in company with other 

 Herons, Spoonbills, and Ibises; and it will give some idea of 

 the extent of these breeding-colonies when he estimates one 

 of them at 30,000 individuals. No wonder that, when they 

 were in the air, they produced a " deafening sound " with 

 their wings. The difficulty which Mr. Clarke, an accredited 

 zoologist, found in getting a " permit " to collect, encourages 

 a hope that these last resorts of Herons in Europe have not 

 become available to the " plume " hunter, and that the orna- 

 mental feathers of the small Herons will still be safe on the 



