BRITAIN^S BIRDS AND THEIR NESTS. 155 



small bay of a west Highland sea-loch. We may also see 

 this bird at other occupations than hunting ; sometimes 

 wading about the shallows, or occasionally swimming a 

 deeper portion to save taking wing. Or we may see it in 

 flight, and then we fully realise what a big bird it is. 

 The neck is gracefully cm-ved, the legs are trailed behind at a 

 downward angle, and the large, rounded wings, which have 

 a span of close on six feet, beat the air slowly. The flight, 

 indeed, seems the acme of leisureliness ; but there is great 

 power in those large wings in proportion to the weight to 

 be borne — for the actual body of the Heron is small, and 

 the whole bird scales only three or four pounds. Moreover, 

 the motion of large objects often appears deceptively slow, 

 and when we come to make a more accurate estimate of 

 its speed we find that it gets along at a very creditable 

 pace. 



But our special purpose here is to visit the Heron in its 

 nesting haunts. These, contrary to what we might reason- 

 ably expect, are usually woodlands, and the nests are ordinarily 

 placed in trees, where the birds, till we have got accustomed 

 to the sight, look inappropriate enough. A hundred or two 

 heroni-ies still remain in the British Isles out of the much 

 larger number that formerly existed, and these are mostly 

 mere shadows of the prosperous colonies of the olden days 

 when, not a century and a half ago, we are told, fourscore 

 nests were to be seen in a single tree. Here and there also 

 a single pair of birds may be found. 



The majority of British heronries are in England and 

 Wales, but the distribution of the Heron is nevertheless very 

 wide, for it is very adaptable to circumstances as regards 

 nesting-sites. The tops of lofty and almost unclimbable 

 trees are chosen when these are available ; but if not, quite 

 low trees and even bushes are utilised. In rare cases the 

 nest is placed in a reed-bed or on the bare ground, while 



