106 SHOOTING. 



j)rotected as sucli by the law. Whoever destroyed their eggs was 

 liable to a penalty of t^yellty shillings for each oiFenc8._ _ When 

 lieron-havv'king was a favouiite divprsion_ among the nobility and 

 gentry, the bird was considered a rich dainty at their tables. 



The Great White Heron {Ardea Alba, Linn.) is seldom found ia 

 Great Britain. It is much about the same size as the common 

 heron, only its legs are a little longer. _ It is devoid of a crest, and 

 its plumage is enth-ely white ; its bill is yellow, and its le^s black. 

 It is found in considerable numbers in the Russian dominions, and 

 in most of the countries contiguous to the Caspian and Black Seas 

 and the lakes of Tartary. It is met with in the United States of 

 America from June to October, and is often shot in these localities. 



The NigJit Heron {Ardea Nycticorax, Linn.) is only about twenty 

 inches in length. The bill is nearly four inches _ long, shghtly 

 arched, strong, black, and inclining to yellow at its base. The 

 skm from the beak round the eye is bare, of a greenish hue, and 

 its irides are yellov,-. A white line is extended from the beak, and 

 over each eye a black patch, glossed with green, covers the crown 

 of the head and nape of the neck, from which three long and nar- 

 row wliite feathers, tipped with bro^ni, hang loose and vravin^g. 

 The hinder part of the neck, coverts of the wings, sides, and tail, 

 are ash-coloui-ed, and the throat is vvdiite. The fore part of the 

 neck, breast, and belly, are of a yellowish white, approaching to 

 buff; the back is black, and the legs a greenish yellow. The 

 female bird is nearly of the same dimensions, but she differs cou« 

 siderably in her plumage from the male. The former is less bright, 

 distmct, and vividly portrayed; neither has she the dehcate plumes • 

 which flow from the head of the male. 



The night heron frequents the sea-shores, rivers, and inland 

 lakes and marshes, and lives upon crickets, slugs, frogs, reptiles, 

 and fish. It remains concealed during the day, and does not roam 

 abroad until the approach of nightfall. It is heard and known by its 

 rough, harsh, discordant cry, vv^hich is by some compared to the noise 

 made by a person striving to vomit. She builds her nest on rocky 

 cliffs, and lays three or four white eggs. Bu"ds of this kind are very 

 difficult to shoot, on account of their extreme caution and wariness, 

 _ The Ruff {Tringa pugnax, Linn.) — This is a fen-bird of a pecu- 

 liar kind. The length of the rnif is about twelve inches, and its 

 weight ranges between six and eight ounces. The bill is about 

 an inch long, and is tipped Vv'ith black, but reddish at the base. 

 The distinctive mark which separates the male from the female is 

 the singular wide-spreading, variegated tuft of feathers, wliich in 

 the breedmg-season grows out of their necks. This tuft, a portion of 

 which stands up like ears behind each eye, is in some black, in others 

 black and yellow, and in some rather rare cases white, rust-colour, 

 or barredwith glossy violet, black and white. The entire face oi 

 the bird is covered -with reddish tubercles, or pimples ; the wing 

 coverts are brownish ash-coloui' ; the upper parts and the breast 

 are generally marked with transverse bars, and the scapulars v.dth 



