XXIV. THE PADDY-BIRD. 



" The eeVs joe the heroun" Chaucer. 



IT is not many cities of this si/e that can claim a heron 

 of any sort as a resident ; but the Pond Heron or Paddy- 

 bird (Ardeola grayi) lives and moves and has his being 

 with us always, and is very fairly numerous. Conspicuous 

 he is too, when he spreads his white wings for flight ; until 

 then you will probably not notice him at all in most cases. 

 For his drab upper plumage is most admirably protective, 

 and he would well merit the title of the " surprise bird," 

 if the American globe-trotter had not already bestowed 

 that on the Roller or blue- jay. When the breeding 

 season comes on in the rains, however, the Paddy-bird 

 feels that he must be smart at all risks, and goes in for a 

 dun ruff and maroon cloak, an alteration in his appearance 

 that " gives him away" at once. I say "him," but as 

 a matter of fact "her" would be just as correct, for the 

 Paddy-birds, like most of the heron family, show no 

 difference between the sexes, even when they put on a 

 wedding-dress. Young Paddy-birds are drab-and-white 

 like the old ones in winter, though they may be distin- 

 guished by the white of the wings being slightly sullied in 

 places. When they are squabs in the nest, their scanty 

 down allows their skin to be seen, and this, curiously 

 enough, is of a light and cheerful green like their legs, and 



