ANDERSON — THE BIRDS OF IOWA. 1 95 



nest until taken off, trjdng- to frighten awaj- the intruder by 

 erecting the feathers and thrusting with the strong, sharp bill. 

 The nest is placed on low, damp ground near the edge of a slough 

 or in the middle of a slough in a bed of rushes over the water. 

 The eggs number four or five, brownish-drab in color, and sets 

 are complete about the first of June in northern Iowa. The 

 latest date I have is June 22, 1890, when I found a nest contain- 

 ing five eggs nearly ready to hatch in Winnebago county. 



Genus Ardetta Gray. 



69. (191). Ardetta exit is (Gmel.). Least Bittern. 



The Least Bittern, although from the reports of observers ap- 

 pearing to be generally distributed over the state, is not so com- 

 mon as the larger species. It is much more locally distributed 

 and appears to be abundant at only a few points. The shy and 

 retiring disposition of the species and the habit of keeping close 

 cover in the matted jungles of reeds and rushes in large marshes 

 may have much to do with its apparent rarity at many places. 

 The Least Bittern may be found nesting in an\- part of the state 

 where reedy swamps or sloughs exist. 



On July 7, 1S92, I took a set of five highly incubated eggs near 

 Forest City, and June 16, 1894, found three nests containing five 

 eggs each and one containing four eggs, in the bulrushes around 

 the edge of a small lake in Hancock county. The nests were 

 simply slight platforms of dry reeds placed several inches abov^e 

 the water in clumps of rushes. 



The only locality where I have found the Least Bittern really 

 abundant was in Dickinson county. During the early part of 

 August, 1901, large numbers were seen in dense beds of reeds 

 lining "The Narrows" between Spirit Lake and East Okoboji. 

 They did not appear in flocks but every rod of two one would fly 

 up, or climbing up a reed-stalk, would hang to it until the 

 intruder came quite near. Both adults and fledged young birds 

 were jtaken . 



Dr. B. H. Bailey found them abundant at Clear Lake (Cerro 

 Gordo) July 7-15, and at Eagle Lake (Hancock) Jul}' 17-20, 1902; 

 also nesting commonl}- at Eagle Lake in June, 1903. The spe- 

 cies is only tolerably common in Johnson county owing to the 

 scarcity of sloughs. May 8, 1904, I saw eight birds in a small 



