How HERONS HUNT. 159 



My friend and present "landlord," M. M., 

 like J. M. of my June-time camp, is a good 

 observer, a woodsman and a water lover. He 

 told me of watching a fox squirrel and a ground- 

 hog, rodents both, sit erect side by side on one 

 of the slopes and eat acorns for half an hour 

 together. Within less than two feet of one an- 

 other, they held the acorns in their fore-paws, 

 broke the hulls with their teeth and munched 

 in harmony. A feast in the wilderness that 

 which I would have given much to see. 



For ten minutes this morning I watched at 

 close range a green heron seeking a breakfast. 

 It stood on a dead limb which had fallen so as 

 to form l an arch a few inches above and across 

 a riffle in the stream. At first it alighted on 

 the middle of the limb near the center of the 

 riffle. Bending far over it held the end of its 

 long bill close to the swift flowing water. Then 

 turning its head sideways so as to better look 

 downward it stood for several minutes as if 

 carved from stone. Nothing to its liking came 

 to view and after a time it walked slowly to the 

 end of the limb close alongside some water wil- 

 lows and assumed the same attitude. Suddenly 

 the bill went down and home. Up it came with 

 a large struggling crawfish. Shaking it about 

 until it was in the right position it swallowed 

 it tail first. The two long front claws protruded 



