THE COMMON NIGHT-HERON. 



Nycticorax Gardenii. 

 PLATE VI. 



N. Europeus steph. Ardea nycticorax, Linn. Bihoreau a 

 manteau noir, Temm. Night-Heron of British autliors. 

 Nyctiardea, Swain. 



THIS bird is considered by all our writers, the Prince 

 of Canino excepted, as ranging over both Europe 

 and America, but by the ornithologist dissenting 

 the distinctions are not given. We have been unable 

 to compare an American specimen, but whatever 

 may be the result, they are most closely allied, and 

 although we keep the synonymes separate, we shall 

 now treat of the species as identical.* Like many 

 other birds where the livery is double, the adult and 

 young have been described as distinct. The latter 

 state is represented in the back figure of our plate, 

 and was known under the appellation of A. Gardenii, 

 which we have used at the head of this description. 

 In Britain it is of occasional appearance, like all 

 those rare species we have last described, and we do 



* Wilson however remarks, " that the European species is 

 certainly much smaller than the American." 



