176 NATURAL HISTORY. 
South America, called, from its loud harsh voice, the 
Trumpeter. It is about the size of a Fowl, and is read- 
ily domesticated. It runs rapidly, but seldom takes the 
wing. There are two large membranous bags connect- 
ed with the windpipe at its lower part, which are sup- 
posed to give force to the voice, being used as the full 
bag of air is in the bagpipe. 
286. The Heron family may be considered as the typ- 
ical family of this order, the birds included in it being 
pre-eminently formed for wading. They are found on 
the margins of rivers, lakes, and marshes, and live on 
fishes, reptiles, and sometimes small Mammalia. They 
have, usually, long, stout, and sharp-pointed beaks, in or- 
' der to capture the fish 
for which they watch 
so patiently in the atti- 
tude represented in Fig. 
142. Contrary to the 
habits of most of the 
birds of this order, the 
Heron builds its nest 
in a high tree, feeding 
its young with fish for 
five or six weeks. The 
' common Heron, Figure 
/ 142, is spread over a 
great part of the Old 
World. The plumes of 
this bird were former- 
ly worn as ornaments 
only by the noble. 
There is an allied species in America. The Spoon-bills, 
notwithstanding the form of the beak, are generally rank- 
ed in the Heron family. They live by the edges of marsh- 
es, or near the sea-shore, where there are thick bushes, 
and their food consists of fishes, mollusks, and aquatic 
insects. The White Spoon-bill of the Old World, Fig. 
Fig, 142.—Heron. 
