Young 
bird. 
42 
GRALLATORES. NYCTICORAX. Niceur-Heron. 
neck spring three long narrow subulated white feathers, 
concave or canaliculated underneath, and fitting one 
within the other, so as to appear like a single plume; 
and these the bird can erect at pleasure, when alarmed 
or irritated. The legs and toes are pale yellowish-green ; 
the claws black, short, and hooked; with that of the 
middle toe pectinated on its inner side. 
Puate 7.* Is a figure of the Gardenian Heron (of 
authors), thought to have been a distinct species, but 
now fully ascertained to be the young of the Common 
Night-Heron, in its first (or nestling) plumage; drawn 
from a British specimen, in the possession of Mr Y ar- 
RELL, and kindly lent to me for the purpose. 
In this state it wants the plumes from the nape of the neck. 
The culmen and tip of the bill are blackish brown; the 
base and lower mandible yellowish-green. The irides 
(according to Wrtson) are vivid orange, ‘The head 
and back part of the neck are brown, with the centres 
of the feathers yellowish-white. ‘The fore part of the 
neck and the feathers of the breast are yellowish-white, 
deeply margined with wood-brown and yellowish-brown. 
The belly and abdomen are the same. The back and 
the lesser wing-coverts are deep wood-brown, with sub- 
triangular yellowish-white streaks occupying the centres 
of the feathers. The greater coverts and quills are deep 
wood-brown ; their tips with triangular spots of white. 
The tail is broccoli-brown. The legs yellowish-green, 
As the bird proceeds to maturity, it acquires, at each suc- 
cessive moulting, a plumage approaching nearer to that 
of the adult; and in these intermediate stages has been 
described as constituting different species, by various 
writers, as may be seen by the list of synonyms above 
given. 
