Vol 'i906 :i11 ] Cameron, Nesting of Great Blue Heron. 253 



but no trace was found of the heron colony. It was my conviction 

 that, at the present time, herons nested on inaccessible islands in 

 the Yellowstone and that the nests, accordingly, escaped observa- 

 tion, as boats are very scarce in this country. 



Last year (1905) I was able to locate a heronry on an island of 

 the Yellowstone about fifteen miles below my ranch, but, previous 

 to the discovery, my friend Mr. J. H. Price had written sending 

 particulars of another which he had visited on Powder River about 

 thirty miles above the mouth. The latter, therefore, received 

 attention first, and on June 29 an expedition was made there, when 

 we found seven nests at the top of two tall pole-like cottonwoods, 

 placed in the extremities of branches so thin that they would not 

 bear the weight of even a small boy. Six of the nests were in a tree 

 at the extreme edge of the river bank and three overhung the water 

 in such a manner that any birds falling out would have been car- 

 ried away on the swift current. The seventh nest was built at the 

 summit of another tree, directly behind the first, in a dead branch, 

 as also was one of the other nests. All were quite out of reach of 

 the most expert climber except one which was nearest to the first 

 fork of the tree containing six. At our approach nine old birds 

 flew to a sandbar in the centre of the river, on which, later, they 

 were observed to be fishing, but after their departure no sign of life 

 was visible at the nests. A recently dead, full feathered nestling 

 of large size which had been killed by a fall from above lay under 

 the trees. We proceeded to pitch our tent in a glade of the cotton- 

 woods, choosing a situation about a hundred yards off where unob- 

 structed observations could be made on several nests through 

 binoculars. It was found that the birds, both old and young, 

 were extremely wary, so that until all talking and camp prepara- 

 tions ceased there was no sign from either. With such a small 

 number of nests the peculiar odor of decaying fish from the heronry, 

 although strong, was not very unpleasant. After a long period of 

 silence the young herons, becoming hungry, stood quite erect, when 

 it was seen that five nests contained four birds in each and the 

 remaining two but three occupants. It is a likely supposition that 

 all seven nests, at first, held four birds each, as the nestling picked 

 up under the tree accounted for one, while another might easily 

 have fallen into the river. 



