A First Glance at the Birds, 



the whistling swans, which, however, are 

 less abundant than the geese. 



In traveling about the shores of San 

 Francisco Bay, or indeed in any marshy 

 places in the state, you may often see a 

 great, long, slender bird, perched high 

 up on stilts — a solitary blue-gray fisher- 

 man, wading about in the pools and in- 

 tently watching for game. When 

 aroused he flaps off with a lumbering 

 flight, his long feet stretched out behind 

 him in lieu of a tail. The bird, often 

 incorrectly called a crane, is the great 

 blue heron. 



Although the herons are waders and 

 spend much of their lives in shallow 

 water, they perch and nest in the trees. 

 The little green heron is a very com- 

 mon species all over the country, and 

 among our other representatives are 

 the black-crowned night heron and 

 the snowy egret. You all know the 

 egrets, for their plumes are in great 

 demand for ladies' bonnets. The 

 plumes of any heron may be used — a 



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