35^ COMMON HERON. 



there is only one heronry— a very large one — at Ecury-le-grand, 

 near Champigneul, in Marne ; though scattered pairs are found in 

 many districts. To the Spanish Peninsula, the Canaries, Madeira 

 and the Azores, it appears to be chiefly a winter-visitor ; as it is 

 also to the basin of the Mediterranean, Africa down to the Cape, 

 Madagascar, Mauritius, Australia, and the southern portions of 

 Asia ; but in the latter it nests from Ceylon northward, as far as 

 China and Japan. 



In January, if the season is very mild, but as a rule in February, 

 the Herons resort to their breeding-places — often occupied for 

 years in succession — and, like the Rooks, in whose proximity they 

 often build, they nest in company, in varying numbers, on high 

 trees ; sometimes, however, on precipitous sea-cliffs or among crags 

 covered with ivy and shrubs, as well as on the bare hill-sides or the 

 walls of ruins. The nest, flat and rather broad, is formed of sticks, 

 and lined with small twigs, roots and dry grass ; the eggs, 3-4 in 

 number, are uniform bluish-green: average measurements 2*5 by 

 175 in. Incubation lasts about twenty-eight days; and a fortnight 

 later a second clutch of eggs is sometimes laid and hatched off, 

 with the young birds in the nest. On the Danube breeding appears 

 to be in May or June. The heronries are occupied from spring to 

 August, and are occasionally visited in the winter, but during that 

 season the bird is often solitary and rather shy. Its food consists 

 of reptiles, molluscs, crustaceans, worms, insects, small mammals — 

 such as water-rats and field-mice, and still more largely of eels, pike 

 and other coarse fresh-water fish, but trout and the young of water- 

 fowl are not neglected. Young Herons are excellent eating, and 

 were formerly esteemed for the table. The alarm-note is a loud 

 frank, fraiik, which is especially startling to other birds, but at the 

 nest it is a prolonged kronk or kraak. When flying, this species is 

 easily recognized by the slow flapping of its rounded wings. 



The adult male has the crest bluish-black ; upper parts chiefly 

 slate-grey ; forehead, cheeks and neck white, the latter streaked with 

 dark bluish-grey, and terminating in long white feathers ; under 

 parts greyish-white ; bill yellow. Length 36 in.; wing 18 in. In 

 the female the colours are less bright and the plumes are shorter ; 

 as they are also in the young birds, in which the under parts are 

 ash-colour, and there are no long feathers at the bottom of the 

 neck. Varieties are sometimes obtained. 



The members of this family have the breast and lower flanks 

 furnished with well-developed powdery tufts of decomposed feathers, 

 the use of which is not known. 



