THE TRUE BITTERNS. 91 



stances, drawing themselves out to their full length, with 

 every feather tightly compressed, and beaks pointing straight 

 to the sky, so as to present as narrow a front view as possible, 

 with the object of attempting to escape observation from the 

 similarity of the plumage of their necks and breasts to the 

 brown and yellow tints of the reeds, flags, and other aquatic 

 vegetation amongst which they are very often to be found. 

 The food of the Little Bittern consists of small fishes, reptiles, 

 and insects of all sorts. A friend informs me that one of these 

 birds in his possession supported itself to a great extent by 

 catching the mice and lizards that came into the aviary in 

 which it was kept in the island of Teneriffe. . . . The 

 only note that I ever heard uttered by this species is, to my 

 ear, best rendered by ' woogh, woogh ' a sort of deep gut- 

 teral cough." The female is said to have a note like gate or 

 gett, and Naumann says that that of the male resembles the 

 syllable pumm several times repeated, then a long pause, and 

 again uttered. 



Nest. According to Lord Lilford, the nest of the Little 

 Bittern is usually, but not invariably, built amongst growing 

 reeds, and he describes one as built entirely of dry flag-leaves. 

 It is sometimes found on the heads of pollard-willows, and it 

 has been also known to adapt the old nest of a Magpie in a 

 tree near to a swamp. 



Eggs. From five to nine in number ; white with a very faint 

 tinge of green. Axis, i*3-i'5 inch; diam, ro-n. 



THE TRUE BITTERNS. GENUS BOTAURUS. 



Botaurus, Stephens, in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xi. p. 592 (1819). 

 Type, B. stellaris (L.). 



The Bitterns have ten tail feathers and the bill serrated. 

 The latter is moderately long, with the culmen about equal to 

 the inner toe and claw. The middle toe and claw are very 

 long, and far exceed the length of the tarsus. The hind-claw 

 is also very long, and is nearly equal to the hind-toe in length. 

 The plumage is wavy in character, and there is an immense 

 frill on the neck, 



