THE HERON. 177 



THE HERON. 



The Herons very nearly resemble the cranes, both 

 in appearance, and habits. They are all waders, and 

 live chiefly on fish, and other food which they take 

 from the water. They have long necks, long legs, and 

 long sharp bills, all of which are finely adapted to their 

 mode of life. The Herons are generally less in size 

 than the cranes, and may be distinguished from them 

 by the long feathers on the crown of the head. They 

 are a very numerous tribe of birds, the number of 

 species and varieties being nearly one hundred, and 

 some of them are to be found in almost every part of 

 world. 



THE GREAT HERON. 



How large is the Great Heron ? 



The Great Heron is five feet and four inches high 

 from the ground to his head, and about six feet in ex- 

 tent, with his wings spread ; his bill is eight inches 

 long. 



What colour is this bird ? 



The colours of this bird, give him a very singular 

 appearance. The crest, the lower parts of the legs, 

 the quill feathers, and the fore part of the neck are 

 black ; upper part of the back, tail and wings, bluish 

 slate colour ; on the back and breast there grow long 

 hair-like feathers, which are white ; throat and crown 

 of the head, white ; back part of the neck light brown ; 

 the bill is yellow. 



Where is the Great Heron found? 



The Great Heron is an American bird, and inhabits 

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