CHECK LIST OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 107 



661. Dichromanassa rufa (Bodd.) Ridg. B 482, 483. c 455. R 491. 



Reddish Egret. 



662. Florida ccemlea (L.) Bd. B 490. c 456. R 490. 



Little Blue Heron, 



663. Butorides virescens (L.) Cab. B 493. c 457. R 494. 



Green Heron. 



664. Nyctiardea grisea nsevia (Bodd.) Allen. B 495. c 458. R 495. 



American Night Heron. 



665. Nycterodius violaceus (L.) Reich. B 496. c 459. R 496. 



Yellow-crowned Night Heron. 



666. Botaums mugitans (Bartr.) Coues. B 492. c 460. R 497. 



American Bittern. 



667. Ardetta exilis (Gm.) Gr. B 491. c 461. R 498. 



Least Bittern. 



661. Di-chro-mS-nas'-sa ru'-fa. Gr. Sis, twice; XP^A"*> chroma, color ; originally, probably, 



flesh-color; and va<raa, a water-fowl; alluding to the dichroism or dichromatism which 

 prevails in this and other herons, these birds of the same species being found either pure 

 white or variously colored. Lat. rufus, reddish. 



This stands as Ardea rufa in the orig. ed. See Ridg., Bull. U. S. Geol. and Geogr. 

 Surv. Terr., iv, No. 1, 1878, p. 246. 



662. Fl5'-rl-da coe-rul-g-a. Lat.Jloridus, florid, flowery ; flos, a flower ; but the genus is named 



for the State of Florida. Lat. cceruleus, blue ; see Polioptila, No. 36. 



663. Bu-tor-i'-des vlr-es'-cens. Lat. butio or butor, a bittern; equal to bo-taur, bo-taurus, bos- 



taurus ? see Bubo, No. 462 ; e?5os, resemblance. There is also a proper name Butor ides 

 Lat. virescens, present participle of viresco, I grow green, am greenish, from vireo, which 

 see, No. 170. 



664. Nyc-tl-ar'-dg-a grls'-g-a nae'-vl-a. Badly formed from Gr. j>u|, gen. WKTJS, night, and 



Lat. ardea, a heron ; better Noctiardea, like Noctiluca, &c. Lat. griseus, see Macrorham- 

 phus, No. 609, and Leucosticte, No. 205. Lat. ncevius, see Turdus, No. 5. 



665. Nyc-ter-o'-dl-us vI-6-la'-c6-us. Gr. */u|, night, and tyu8i6s, a heron, like the Latin ardea. 



Commonly written nyctherodius ; but we see no occasion for the h, the e not being aspi- 

 rated ; though the h is seen in the Lat. herodias. Lat. violaceus, violet-colored ; viola, 

 a violet, pansy. 



686. B5-tau'-rus mu-gl'-tans. The many words bittern, bitorne, bitore, butor, butio, are all onoma- 

 topoeic, from the hollow guttural sound of the bird's voice, and are referable to bos- 

 taurus or bo-taurus? see Bubo, No. 462. Lat. mugitans, bellowing; mugilo, I low like a cow ; 

 as the children say, " moo." 



667. Ar-det'-ta ex-IMls. Ardetta is an Italian word, equivalent to ardeola, diminutive of ardea. 

 Lat. exilis, contracted from exigilis, equivalent to exiguus, from exigo, this equal to ex 

 and ago, literally, I drive out. Any thing exacted or exact, is carefully measured, con- 

 sidered, strictly accounted for ; hence likely to be scanty, as opposed to abundant, or 

 superfluous ; therefore, poor, thin, mean, small; any of these latter adjectives well suited 

 to this lean little bird. We have the idea in several applications in the English words 

 exigency, an emergency ; exiguous, small ; the French exigeant, exacting ; and in our 

 rare though actual word exile, small. (The latter must not be confounded, however, 

 with exile, banishment, one banished ; though this might seem exactly from exigo, " I 

 drive out," it is from another root : exsulo, exsul.) 



