ARDEin.K TlIK HKllONS - HOTArUTS. 



09 



• ■rnvisli, ami in sonif even almost dlisulele. I I'linnut ileterniiiie, liowever. Iliut this tliH'ereuce is 

 ^I'Mial or si'uxoiial, or ile|ieiiileiit nil liicalitv ; il in |ii'(ilial)ly »<iiii|il,v an iiiiiiviilnal variation. 



i'lic ('(iiimioii IJittfiii of Niirlli Aiiu'riia lias a very fxtt'iidt'd (listriliution. ami one 

 almost ro-t'xtciisivi" witli tiie iKirtluTii coiitiiu'iit itst'li'. It is i'diiml iioiii Trxas to 

 I 111' Aretir rcj^ioiis. anil troin tin' Atiantie to the I'acilic, ami liict'ils wlicicvfr it is 

 toiiiiil. It is p'tn'rally, lait imt. iiMiviTsally. ilistrihutril, and tlocs ntit ot't'iir in rcj^ions 

 misiiitfil litr its n-siili-nrf. 



lleariii'. in liis ••tloiiiin'v to llir Nintlirrii Oecaii,"" speaks of this liinl as liciii}^ 

 ciiiiiiiion at iMirt. ^'(l^k ( llmlson's I Say) in siininicr, lint as licin},' si'lilnni nirl witli so 

 r,ir tiortli as Cliurrliill liivcr. it is always fi.nml InMini'iitin^' niarslics ami swampy 

 lilaci's. as also tin- liaiiks iif siicli rivers as alioiiml with reeds and lon>; f,'rass. Il 

 l^eiierally i'eeds (in the iiiseels that ai'e hred in the water, and pinlialily on small t'fd^s 

 and tadpoles; and tlionj^h seldom very fat, is f,'enerally considered t,'ood eatiiii,'. It is 

 l)V no means nnmerons. even at l''ort \'oik. nor, in la, t, even in the most southern ]iaits 

 III the r>ay that Heanu^ visited. Kiehaiilson speaks of it as a common liird in the 

 iiKirshes and willow thickets oi' tlit> iiiteiior of tliP l-'nr ('oniitry as lar north as the 

 ."iMJi paiallel. Its lond lioominj; note is said exactly to resemlile that of the Conunon 

 r.itteni of Knrope; this may Im' heard every summer eveiiin;;. and also freipu'iit.ly in 

 the day. When distnrlied or alarmed, it utters a hollow croaking,' cry. Captain 

 lUakiston did not meet with it on the plains of tlw Saskatchewan. althou;,di he was 

 told that it was not uncommon in the interior, jlr. Mossay met with it on the coast 

 of lliulson's Hay ; and .Mr. l!oss cites its ranf.'e on the Mackeii/.ie River us extendinj^ 

 even to the Arctic Ocean, where its presence I'uist lie very rare. 



Mr. r>oai'dman informs us that this hinl is (piite common in the vicinity of 

 Calais, where it lireeds aliumhintly. It is usually louud on hi},di. <ir i-ither on dry, 

 tiromid, where it makes only a very slij,dit nest. The y<Min.i; birds hide in the long 

 1,'iiiss; and it is no* an uncommon oecurretice for mowers when at wiirk to take off 

 tiii'ir heads. .Mr. \>'. K. Kndicott writes to the "Naturalist" (I. p. ■'tlTi) that the 

 .statement that this bird builds in bushes, in the manner of Herons, is not in 

 acciivdance with his expeiience. lie has never met with its nest, either on low frei-s 

 or in Im.slies. So far as he knows, it does not make any nest at all; lint all the ej^ffs 

 that he has ever found have Ih'cu hiid on the bare j,'ronnd among thick tufts of 

 dwarf laurel on the l''owl-meadows that skirt the upjier jiarts of the Neponset River, 

 lie has never found this bird in commuiuties, and has never been able to discover 

 iiMire than a single m'st in a field of ten acres, though he has searched diligently. 

 That the Itittern, when it nests on the uplands, or on ground constantly dry and 

 secure from inundations, may have, a:^ mentioned by Mr. I'xtardman, a very scanty 

 nest, or even no nest at all, as was observed by .Mr. Kndicott, is [irobable ; but it is 

 not universally true. The IMtt«u'n in the Wt'st builds almost univer.sally a substantial, 

 and sometimes considendily elevated nest, always on the ground; but the portion 

 on whicdi the eggs are laid is consich'rably above the level of the ground. This is 

 undoubtedly due to the fact that it is forced to nest in jdaces either naturally swampy. 

 or which in niiny .seaH.ins are liable to be flooded to the dejith of .several inches. Kx- 

 liericnce has doubtless taught the liinl that the bare earth, or e^-eii a scanty supjilyof 

 dry ridibish, is not enough in such localities ; and thus we lind it breeding in the 

 nii.rslH's of hake Koskonong, in the o]ien ground, never among trees or in bu.slies. 

 and alw;iys keeping its eggs ii.-i dry as the Feast IJittern; the ne.st, or, more properly 

 speaking, the upper part <if tiie monm' <in w liiidi the eggs are laid, Indng always dry. 

 It is not at all gregarious in the breeding .season. 



