00 



ALTUICIAI. (iK.\l,I.A'n»l;i:s _ IIKUmDIoNKS. 





Tlin t'KKi* o« this Hinrii'S a i' in xi/r uml .sliii|H' imt iiiiliki- tlio.sc ut' tin- Nif,'iit 

 llfi-uii — an oblong oval. Tin-ir ,><liailc ot ^'rcchihii l)lii«- i.s li^'litn- an*l duller, and 

 tin- pnipoition dI nn-i'U i.s less niaikiil. 'I'lu'y vary tonsidfialily in »'i/.v. Two in my 

 i'ollf(tii)n, takfu liy IM. Itiviint in I'lmida, nn'a.>>uii', (Mir, L'.lO l»y l.|<» inches, the 

 otiu'i-, I.'.U hy 1.44 inehes, avera^inK -'.(•L' l>y l.Kl inehis. .Vecordinn tt) .Mr. Alooie, 

 tlie nundKT of et,'m's in a «et is not limited to three, as staled hy ,\iidui)on. That 

 author nu'Utioiis that in Louisiana, in .May. lN<f7, he lound live ej,'j,'s in a nest, ami 

 in the following year one with evi'u six, and others witii live or lour. In Khuida, 

 April 'JS, \u' I'ound one with liv»> and another with I'uiir e^gs. .Mr. Moore disendits 

 the statement tiiat this Heron has two iiroods in a season, and does not helieve the 

 iieeount given iiy Auduhon ol its moving Irom one heronry to another in order to 

 nest and Itreed. 



Mr. IJidgway found this Heron breeding very aliundantly at Monteur's IVuid, in 

 Knox Co., Indiana, where it was mueh the nmst numerous speeies (d' the family. 

 .Many dozens of pairs had their nests in tall sweet-gum and other trees, in a very 

 w«'t pieei' of "lK)ttoms," along one i-dge of the pond. A female was shot from her 

 nest, and in her oviduet was found an egg reaily for ejeetion. A few hours after- 

 ward another female was shot from the same nest ! In the similar wet liottoms of 

 ColTee Creek, in Wahash Co., Illinois, ipiite a nilonv of the.se hinls was also found 

 nesting, thu uests iK'ing phu'ed at various heights in white oak and other trees. 



(Jknis BOTAURUS, Stki'iikxs. 



Jlulduni.t, SrKi'HEX.s .Sjmw'.s Ccii. ZimiI. .\I, ii. isi'.i, aifj (t.v|H, .titlai Mlnrin, l.ixs.). 

 Biilur, Sw.viN.s. ('Ia.s»il'. B. II. Is;t7, .i.")4 (saim- tyi«<). 



(Jkx. Ch.vii. — Miiliiiiu-si/(<l, i<v raliur largf, Iliroii.-*, with tin- phuimgc muib iiicptllL(l or 

 utrilK-'J with (lill'i-rLiit .-liiuUs i>f brown and (KhraLtou.'* (tliu pluiuiigi' i .xsiniially thf nuuc in liotli 



Ji. li'Htiffinnsiia. 



sexes and at all seasons) ; the j.luiiiage, particululy of the lower neck in front, exemlingly soft 

 and full, and destitute of any ..nuuii iitiil phnues ; ilic Mil comparatively small and short (shorter 



^'ii-i'^ t- 



