Class II. COMMON HERON. 13 



and the coverts of the wmgs of a light grey ; the 

 back clad only with down, covered with the sca- 

 pulars ; the forepart of the neck white spotted 

 with a double row of black ; the feathers are 

 white, long, narrow, unwebbed, falling loose 

 over the breast; the scapulars of the same 

 texture, grey streaked with white. The ridge 

 of the wing white, primaries and bastard wing 

 black ; along the sides beneath the wings is 

 a bed of black feathers, very long, soft, and 

 elegant ; in old times used as egrets for the 

 hair, or ornaments to the caps of knights of the 

 garter; the breast, belly, and thighs white; 

 the last dashed with yellow. The tail consists 

 of twelve short cinereous feathers ; the legs are 

 of a dirty green ; the toes long, the claws short, 

 the inner edge of the middle claw finely ser- 

 rated. 



The head of the female is grey ; it wants the Female. 

 long crest, having only a short plume of dusky 

 feathers -, the feathers above the breast short ; 

 the scapulars grey and webbed ; the sides grey. 

 This has hitherto been supposed to be a distinct 

 species from the former ; but later observations 

 prove them to be the same. 



" In England, and the milder climates, this 

 species of heron is stationary, migratory in the 



