266 Bent, Nesting Habits of Florida Herodiones. LApril 



the middle of the great marsh, covered with a thick growth of 

 small willows from 12 to 15 feet high. 



Although all three species of Herons were very tame, alighting 

 on the trees all about us, they were very careful not to settle down 

 on to any of the nests within sight of us ; it was only by lying for 

 hours carefully hidden under some thick clumps of large ferns that 

 I was able to satisfactorily identify a few nests. The first nest of 

 Snowy Herons, containing four eggs, was placed 8 feet up in a 

 slender willow and was merely a flimsy platform of small sticks. 

 The second nest held five eggs and was located only 5 feet up in 

 a leaning willow ; it was made of larger sticks and lined with fine 

 twigs. Neither the nests nor the eggs of the Snowy Heron are in 

 any way distinguishable, so far as I could determine, from those 

 of either the Louisiana or the Little Blue Herons. It is necessary 

 to see the bird actually sitting on the nest to make identifi- 

 cation sure ; even then young Little Blue Herons in the white 

 phase are liable to lead to confusion and it is necessary to 

 see the black legs and yellow feet or the graceful plumes of the 

 Snowy Heron. We did not see any Snowy Herons anywhere 

 except in the breeding rookeries and even there they were very 

 shy. 



Hydranassa tricolor ruficollis. Louisiana Heron. 



This beautiful and graceful little Heron is by far the most 

 abundant of its family in all sections of Florida that I have 

 visited. Fortunately its beauty is not expressed in plumes, hence 

 it has escaped the merciless persecution of the plume hunters ; 

 but it is not without plumes, such as they are, which may lead to 

 its destruction when the white aigrette supply is exhausted. Like 

 all the small Herons its flight is light, rapid and graceful, the head 

 drawn in upon the shoulders and the legs stretched out behind. 

 While fishing it stands erect and motionless until some small 

 fish swims within reach, when it crouches down close to the water, 

 takes a few rapid steps forward and darts out its sharp bill like a 

 flash, usually catching the fish near the surface. 



We found the Louisiana Heron breeding very abundantly on 

 the upper St. Johns; sometimes they were in rookeries by them- 



