88 NATURAL HISTOET SKETCHES. 



the scapulars, have a much redder tinge. It is gregarious 

 in its habits, except in breeding ; for, unlike the herons 

 at home, the Australian heron builds a very small soli- 

 tary nest on some old tall gum-tree, often far away from 

 water. I always fancied we had two species of heron, 

 the one much smaller than the other. 



The Purple-and-wJiite Heron occasionally came down 

 into our parts, generally in small flocks ; but I considered 

 it a rare bird. In appearance it resembled its European 

 namesake ; but I fancy it was rather larger and hand- 

 somer. It is, I believe, common in Van Diemen's Land ; 

 at least, we used to call it the Van Diemen's Land heron. 



"We never shot any of these birds for the market, buts 

 we always ate them ourselves, and, to my fancy, they 

 were fully equal to any of the so-called game-birds. 



"We had two species of White Heron, or, as they were 

 called by the shooters, the White Crane, the one much 

 resembling the great white heron of Britain in size and 

 appearance, with a black beak, and another variety, which 

 was much smaller. I think the large white heron was 

 the commonest with us. Now and then an odd one came 

 on to the large swamps in the winter ; but their princi- 

 pal resort was "Western-port Bay, and I have seen a& 

 many as a dozen feeding together at the mud flats there 

 at low water. It is a shy, wary bird. They breed on 

 the large rocks out at the Heads, and seemed to come- 

 down to our district in the autumn. I have, however, 

 seen them in "Western port Bay a very little after 

 Christmas. 



