Rev. II. B. Tristram on thr OniilltoJuyij of Palestine. 325 



through the rushes on the outskirts of the floating bog, the 

 Little Bittern {Ardetta minuta) was flushed every few minutes, 

 while far in we saw large flocks of Buff^-backs {Ardea coro- 

 mandra), and smaller ones of Squaccos [A. ralloides), going and 

 coming like Rooks over the papyrus -tracts. There it was 

 impossible to approach them. The Night-Heron {Nycticorax 

 griseus) kept more on the outskirts of the swamps, just as I 

 have seen him in Algeria and Tunis, in small bands ; while 

 the Common and Purple Herons [Ardea cinerea and A. purpu?-ea) 

 were, in the daytime at least, less gregarious in their movements, 

 but rose singly at all sorts of unsuspected corners. The Little 

 Egret {A. garzetta) was common, but scattered, and not very 

 sociable; while the Great White Egret [A. alba) was scarcer 

 and very wary, generally in parties of from three to six together. 

 But if the nature of the marshes rendered the heronries here 

 impregnable, we were able to secure specimens of all the species 

 when they were incautious enough to seek a fish dinner in the 

 Lake of Galilee. By Ain-et-Tin, at the northern corner of the 

 Plain of Gennesaret, is a beautiful little marsh of papyrus and 

 oleander. No greater treat could be aff"orded an ornithologist 

 than to watch the great White Egrets quietly stalking along 

 the little stream that runs through the swamp, as they fished 

 their way ; and here we used to lie in wait till we had completed 

 our file of Ardeida. All the white species appeared to be only 

 spring and summer visitants; but A. cinerea and A.jmrpurea, 

 and the Bitterns, are scattered throughout the whole country 

 in small numbers at all times of the year. Dr. Jerdon seems to 

 doubt the fact of the various species of Herons breeding, as they 

 do in Algeria and Palestine, on tufts of reed, observing, " this is 

 quite opposed to the habits of all the Egrets^' (B. Ind. ii. p. 745). 

 It may be so in India when they can find trees convenient ; but 

 it is unsafe to draw conclusions from too small an induction, 

 and in these regions there are no trees suitable for them within 

 accessible distance of their feeding-ground*. Even in Ireland 



* [We have been informed, on very good authority, that even in England 

 our common Ardea cinerea of old time used to breed in the fens, and that 

 there was a large heronry near Whittlesea, in Huntingdonshire, and ano- 

 ther at P\'ltwell, in Norfolk ; in the first the nests were built among reeds, 

 in the last on low sallow-bushes. — Ed.1 



