HERONS. 55 



also, in 1578, speaks of the bird as common in Scot- 

 land (" Grues plurimse ")*. 



In a " Notice of animals which have disappeared 

 from Ireland during the period of authentic history," 

 the author, Dr. Scouler, remarksf , " The Crane, Grus 

 cinerea, was formerly so plentiful that, according to 

 Giraldus, flocks consisting of a hundred individuals 

 were extremely common." The words of Giraldus 

 are, "In tanta vero numerositate se grues ingerunt, 

 ut uno in grege centum et circiter numerum frequenter 

 invenies"$. At the present day, however, this bird 

 can only be considered a rare visitant to Great Britain. 



No notice of the species would be complete 

 without reference to the very graphic account of its 

 nesting, as observed in Lapland, by the late Mr. 

 John Wolley, published in 'The Ibis' for 1859. 



Fam. AKDEID.E. 

 COMMON HEKON. Ardea cinerea, Linnaeus. 



Resident, and generally distributed. In ' The Field ' 

 of Feb. 17th and March 9th, 1872, I published a list 

 of all the Heronries ascertained to be then or lately 

 existing in the British Islands. I have since received 

 notices of a few others. 



PUEPLE HEBON. Ardea purpurea, Linnaeus. 



An occasional visitant to England. Has occurred 



* De origine moribus et rebus gestis Scotorum, p. 25. 

 f Journ. Geol. Soc. Dublin, vol. i. p. 224. 

 J Topographia Hiberniae, p. 705. 



