HERONS, RAILS, ETC. 227 



Of the true herons there are several species in the 

 United States, of which in the New England and 

 Middle States the Great and Little Blue Herons are 

 the best known. The former is a migratory species 

 and also resident. In New Jersey and Eastern Penn- 

 sylvania there is annually a considerable number of 

 these birds from April to October, but during the 

 winter the number is small. When they come, in 

 early spring, and have no shelter, they are very shy, 

 and seem much more intent upon guarding against 

 surprise than upon securing food. At times they 

 will appear in the level, open meadows, and fish in 

 the ditches, but never wander near to any bushes or 

 clump of trees in which some foe may/be lurking. 

 Later, when the foliage is out and there is " cover" 

 in the larger trees, these birds will sit in them by the 

 hour motionless and silent, but at dusk they will fly 

 abroad and utter a hoarse cry at brief intervals. 

 Still, they are in no sense nocturnal, and can be 

 found food-hunting at all hours of the day. This 

 food consists of anything in the way of an animal 

 that can be swallowed, an exception probably being 

 young turtles. I have known one of these great blue 

 herons to swallow nearly every one of a large school 

 of catfish. Frogs, of course, are eagerly snapped 

 up, and meadow-mice, crayfish, and even coleop- 

 terous larvae are not overlooked. One that I had in 

 captivity demonstrated how strictly omnivorous they 

 are so far as regards a meat diet. 



The Little Blue Heron is in most of its habits the 

 same as the preceding, with a tendency to remain 

 quiet in the daytime. They come in small numbers 



