196 DAVENPORT ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



slough near Iowa City, and a nest containing five young birds 

 was found in the same slough by Harry Weber about a week 

 later. E. S. Currier reports it as a very abundant summer resi- 

 dent in Ivce county. Most other observers report the species as 

 only fairly common. 



Subfamily ARDEIN.E. Herons and Egrets. 



The Herons form a large group, very similar to the Bitterns. 

 As a rule they seek their food in more open situations than the 

 Bitterns, wading in the water and frequently stalking their prey. 

 Many of the species are gregarious and nest in large rookeries. 

 Seven species have been recorded as captured in Iowa. 



Genus Ardea Linnaeus. 



70. (194). Ardea herodias Linn. Great Blue Heron. 



The Great Blue Heron, popularly called "Blue Crane," is a 

 tolerably common migrant in all parts of the state, and is fre- 

 quently seen along the banks of wooded streams or lakes during 

 the summer months. The Herons usually become more numerous 

 after the middle of July, and during August and September are 

 generally quite common. The species "almost "certainly nests in 

 the state, but I have not been able to learn 'of any rookeries or, 

 indeed, to find any nesting records of recent years. Ke^'es and 

 Williams state that it "breeds in the vicinity of Spirit Lake and 

 other parts of northern Iowa" (Birds of Iowa, 1889, 119). I ob- 

 served large numbers around the shores and in trees on the banks 

 of East Okoboji and Spirit Lakes in August, 1901, and they prob- 

 ably nest in that vicinity still. The Great Blue Heron feeds 

 principally upon frogs and small fish, either standing motionless 

 in shallow water and darting its long sharp bill at any prey which 

 ventures too near, or stealthily advancing and surprising its luck- 

 less victim. The prey is bolted whole, and I have taken a com- 

 mon sucker at least ten inches long from the stomach of one 

 killed on Lime Creek at Forest City. 



The beautiful and graceful Great Blue Heron may well be taken 

 as the typical form which calls to mind the quiet and solitude of 

 our sluggish-flowing wooded streams during the sultry, heated 

 days of summer. 



