IV ARDEIDAE 87 
below, though occasionally feathered, as in Ardetta and Zebrilus ; 
the metatarsus bemg remarkably long, except in such forms as 
Nycticorax, Botaurus, and Ardetta. The latter member is covered 
anteriorly with transverse or hexagonal scales, which become 
smaller or reticulated behind, and show a decided tendency to 
fusion in many cases. The toes are long, with a distinct web 
between the middle and outer; the claws are generally short and 
curved, though elongated, slender, and nearly straight in Botaurus 
and Ardetta ; that of the middle digit being toothed on the inner 
side, save in Balaeniceps. The wing is somewhat rounded, yet long, 
and has eleven primaries—reduced to ten in Scopus—and from 
eleven to eighteen secondaries; the fairly even tail is short or 
moderate, with from ten to twelve broad stiffish feathers, except 
in Botaurus and Ardetta, where the ten rectrices are soft and 
abbreviated. The tongue is usually long and pointed, but in Can- 
croma, Balaeniceps, and Scopus it 1s very short ; the lores and orbits 
are naked, save in Scopus, as is the malar region in 7igrornis and 
Tigrisoma, while the last at times has the throat bare, or merely 
feathered centrally. The nostrils are impervious only in Cancroma 
and Lalaeniceps. The nestlings are uniformly covered with sparse 
hair-like down. The state of the chick is unrecorded in Lalaeniceps 
and Scopus. The furcula is generally V-shaped, the syrinx is 
tracheo-bronchial, and an aftershaft is present, the latter and the 
syringeal muscles being much reduced in Balaeniceps. Crests 
and decorative plumes are common, as will be seen below. 
Of especial importance are the large, thick, “ powder-down 
patches,” or greasy yellow spaces covered with tufts of grey or black 
filaments, disintegrating into bluish or whitish powder.  Balae- 
niceps has a big pair on the lower back, Botaurus and Ardetia an 
additional couple on the breast, and the remainder of the Ardeidae 
two more on the abdomen, except Cancroma which possesses still 
another pair on the upper back. In Scopus they are absent. The 
use 1s uncertain, and the occurrence quite irregular. 
Fam. VI. Ardeidae.—There are few persons in Britain who are 
not to some extent acquainted with the habits of the Common Heron 
or Hern, for it may be seen on the coast as well as on inland waters, 
and now breeds in more localities than formerly, though in smaller 
numbers ; while of the remainder of the Family the Bitterns alone 
differ conspicuously in their mode of life. Herons are shy, 
solitary birds, frequenting lakes, fens, and rivers, where they 
