2056 



HERONS, STORKS, AND IBISES 



the back and wing coverts slaty gray; the long feathers on the back chestnut; the 

 tail gray; the chin pale, and the neck reddish buff; the point of the shoulder and 

 under wing coverts chestnut, and the under parts maroon red anteriorly, and a 

 mixture of maroon, gray, and black posteriorly. The beak and iris are yellow, as 

 is the tibia; while the greater portion of the metatarsus and feet is brown, the claws 

 being black. A straggler to Britain, the purple heron is common in Holland and 



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GOLIATH HERON IN BREEDING PLUMAGE. 

 (One-fifth natural size.) 



Spain, and ranges over the greater part of Europe to the southward of Central 

 Germany. To the eastward it ranges from the Mediterranean to the Indian region, 

 the north of China, and the Philippines, in such districts as are suitable to its 

 habits, but only breeds in the warmer regions. Common and resident in Egypt, 

 it appears to be mainly a winter visitor to most other parts of Africa, although 

 it is a permanent inhabitant of certain marshy districts. The last member of 



