328 Sketches of Some Common Birds. 



forward and downward among the lower vegetation. 

 Sometimes it thrusts its sharp bill into the water, seem- 

 ingly to seize one of the small minnows swarming below. 

 Its adaptation to its tangled surroundings is exhibited by 

 its facility in passing over and among the stems. At times 

 we can see one of them climb partially up the culms of 

 the sedges, and clinging to the stems with all the agility 

 of the marsh wrens as it extends upward its long neck in 

 its quest for food. 



As the least bittern is apparently in no hurry when 

 thus engaged, wo can observe the most noticeable features 

 of its structure and plumage, for its colors are bold and 

 striking, attracting attention at some distance. Its rela- 

 tionship to the herons is shown in the outline of the long, 

 sharp bill, the S-shaped neck, thin, diminutive body, and 

 long legs, all of which features fit it admirably to its 

 swampy environments. Its elongate, flexible neck enables 

 it to reach out for food where the reeds obstruct its pas- 

 sage, and the almost nominal weight of its body admits 

 the bird to mount nearly to the top of the bending flags. 

 Its length of bill enables the bittern to take food partially 

 submerged, and its long legs give it greater facility of 

 movement when it chooses to wade in the shallow water 

 in search of minnows and other aquatic food. Its bright 

 colors make it really handsome, but when seen in its 

 natural environments of dark, moss-grown water, brown- 

 ish-yellow, dried reed stems, and bright-green vegetation, 

 its colors become a mimicry which renders it almost safe 

 from discovery, with its leisurely movements and habits 

 of seclusion. We note the dark glossy green of its entire 

 upper parts, the pale buff of the lower parts, the yellow- 

 ish-green feet, and the various ornamental patches of cin- 

 namon, buff, and orange. In size it is somewhat smaller 

 than the common green heron, or "fly-up-the-creek," 

 which it resembles somewhat in movements and superfi- 

 cial appearance. 



The nesting habits of the bittern are doubtless better 

 known than the private life of the bird, as this is the rule 

 in our general knowledge of bird-life. In ordinary seasons 

 the least bitterns begin to nest about the middle of Ma}'. 

 They are apparently rather capricious about their nidifi- 



