THE LOUISIANA HERON. 165 



himself, tlie victor departing with the prize. 

 In plantations, thickly matted with grasses, 

 roofed with the sombre cypress, their nests are 

 found, sometimes on the tops of the highest 

 trees, sometimes a few feet from the ground, or 

 even on it. The male and female sit alternately, 

 receiving food from each other, which consists 

 of fish, frogs, birds, and even the smaller animals. 

 In the Carolinas, where are a number of reser- 

 voirs and streams containing fish, which intersect 

 the rice fields, these birds are in great abundance. 

 The Louisiana heron, a constant resident in 

 the Carolinas, is found also in the southern parts 

 of the Floridas. So delicate and beautiful is it 

 in attire and form as to be denominated by Au- 

 dubon the Lady of the Waters. With graceful 

 motion, and light and measured tread, this lovely 

 bird in dignified ease leisurely traverses the 

 Florida beaches, with so fairylike a step as to 

 leave no trace upon .the sand. In this way it 

 exhibits to perfection the glowing tints of its 

 pendant crest, the beautifully blended plumage 

 of its back and wings and its gracefully falling 

 train. Always sociable, this bird migrates in 

 company with the blue heron, or night egret, 

 and frequently associates also with the white, 

 the yellow crowned, and the night herons. 

 Light, irregular, and swift in flight, it moves 



