NIGHT HERON. 281 



Ardea Nvcticohax, ii/in. Syst. Nat. voLi. p. 235 — Lath. Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 678. 



Ch. Bonaparte, Synops. of Birds of the United States, p. 306. 



Night Heron, or Qua Bird, Wils. Amer. Ornith. voL viL p. 3, pi. 51, fig. 2. Adult. 



Fig. 3. Young. 

 Qua Bird, or American Night Heron, Ardea oiscors, Nuttall, Manual, vol. ii. 



p. 54. 



Adult Male in Spring. Plate CCXXXVI. Fig. 1. 



Bill a little longer than the head, strong, straight, compressed, taper- 

 ing. Upper mandible with the dorsal line slightly arched and declinate, 

 the ridge broad and rather rounded at the base, narrowed towards the 

 end, the sides sloping, the edges very sharp and inflected, obscurely ser- 

 rated with minute oblique sUts, and having a distinct notch close to the 

 compressed, rather obtuse tip. Nasal groove wide at the base, extending 

 narrow to near the tip ; nostrils basal, linear, wider behind, longitudinal. 

 Lower mandible with the angle very long and narrow, the dorsal line 

 straight and sloping upwards, the sides flat, the sharp obscurely jagged 

 edges slightly inflected, the tip very acute. 



Head oblong, much compressed ; eyes large. Neck long. Body ra- 

 ther slender, compressed. Feet rather long, robust ; tibia bare at its lower 

 part ; tarsus covered anteriorly along its upper two-thirds with scutella, 

 below and on the sides with large angular scales ; toes long and rather 

 slender, scutellate above, flat beneath, marginate ; hind toe stout, fourth 

 a little longer than second, third much longer ; claws of moderate size, 

 stout, arched, compressed, rather acute, that of middle toe beautifully 

 pectinate on the inner edge. 



Plumage soft, blended. Feathers of the upper and hind part of the 

 head elongated and loose, with three very long, linear incurved occipital 

 feathers, having their webs inflected. The feathers of the neck, especial- 

 ly of its lower part and sides, are also elongated, the latter curved back- 

 wards. Wings of moderate length, broad, rounded ; primaries broad, 

 rounded, the third longest, the first longer than the fourth. Tail short, 

 slightly rounded, of twelve broad, rounded feathers. 



Bill black. Bare loral space and eyelids yellowish-green ; iris bright 



I red. Feet yellow ; claws brown. Feathers on the upper part of the 

 head, the fore part of the back, and the scapulars, glossy blackish-green ; 

 anterior part of forehead white ; neck anteriorly white, on the sides and 

 behind shaded into pale lilac, the lower elongated feathers tinged with 



