^'°1908^^'] Court, Treganza Blue Heron. 293 



and outer nest; in fact there is really no inner nest or lining, and the de- 

 pression which receives the eggs and contains the young is very slight. 

 The carcass of fish are very plentiful about nests containing young. 



•The old birds were very retiring, remaining over on the shore of Antelope 

 Island while we were on the White Rock. Nesting in company with Larus 

 califomicus. 



White Rock, May 10, 1906. — Same number of nests as were found May 

 15, 1905, except that all nests were occupied by either young or eggs. 



Hat Island. — The name well describes its form as it appears from a 

 distance. It lies about twenty-five miles due west of White Rock Island 

 and four miles north of Carrington Island, on the west side of the Lake. 

 Three fourths and one half mile are its greatest dimensions, length and 

 breadth. Rises about 90 feet above water line. Fonnation, decomposed 

 rock, boulders, and sand. Thorny sage and weeds are about the only 

 vegetation to be found. 



Hat Island, May 8, 1906. — Found a colony of forty pairs. All stages of 

 nidification existed, except nest building. There seems to l^e a decided 

 difference in the disposition of the young. Some show signs of fight as 

 soon as you make your presence known, while others pay little or no at- 

 tention to your doings. 



The nests here are placed, some on the rocks and some on top of the 

 large thorny sage bushes which grow from 4 feet to 5 feet high. Some of 

 the nests are very beautiful, being built out of sage branches that ha\'e been 

 ■exposed to the elements until they have become a most subtile gray tone, 

 that fairly vibrates under sunlight. Some of the nests measure from 

 4 to 5 feet in diameter. 



The nearest feeding ground for these birds is the mouth of the Jordan 

 River, some thirty-five miles, almost due east of the island. The flight 

 to the feeding grounds begins about 3 a. m., and by sun-rise all the birds 

 that are going for that day have left the island, except a few isolated cases 

 which may be seen going and -coming all day long, the main body returning 

 so that they reach the island by sun-down. Some of the.se birds travel 

 fifty or sixty miles from the island for food. 



A certain portion of the birds always remain on the island during the 

 day. Even were it not for the incubation of the eggs and the care of the 

 young, this would be made necessary through the fact that as soon as a 

 nest of eggs is left unprotected it is immediately pounced upon by the Larus 

 ralifornicus, who crack the eggs bj^ pecking and feed on their contents. 



Here Ardea herodias is nesting in company with Larus califoryiicus and 

 Pelecanus erythrorhyriclws. 



Hat Island, Sept. 10, 1907. — Not a Blue Heron to be found on the island. 

 Neither have we found a nest of addled eggs. The birds must have been 

 very successful in the rearing of their young or else the Gulls devoured any- 

 thing that might have been left. 



Much to our surprise we found there had been a tremendous increase in 



