BRITISH BIRDS. 



THE BUFF-COLOURED EGRET. 



SQUACCO HERON. 



(Ardea Ralloides, Flem. Heron crabicr, Temm.) 



LENGTH of the bill, from the tip to the brow, two 

 and a half inches ; both mandibles yellow, from the 

 base to about the middle; thence to the point, 

 black: lore greenish; irides yellow. The upper 

 part of the head is marked with longish stripes of 

 dusky and buff; on the rest of its flowing 1 crest, the 

 feathers are white in the middle, with black edges ; 

 about six of them are longer than the rest, the two 

 middle ones reaching the back: the rest of the 

 plumage is in different shades of rusty buff and 

 white, but the back is deepest, and of a vinous cast. 

 The legs, toes, and bare part of the thighs, are 



