174 AEDEUDtE. 



The Night-Heron nests in suitable localities throughout the United States and in 

 certain parts of Canada, migrating southward on the approach of the cold weather, 

 though passing the winter in some of the Southern States. It is a resident in Western 

 Mexico, but not very plentiful there. As Mr. Nutting noticed the species in Costa 

 Kica in April, it probably breeds in that country. If. griseus is a winter visitor only to 

 the Bermudas, nesting plentifully in the West India Islands and also in Trinidad. 



The food of this species consists mainly of small fish, but frogs, lizards, and also small 

 mice form part of its prey. The nests are built by the birds in colonies, and are 

 sometimes placed in trees at a great height, at other times close to the ground, 

 and invariably in swampy situations. They consist of a cradle of sticks, firmly put 

 together. The eggs are generally four, but as many as seven have been recorded ; they 

 are oval in shape and of a light greenish-blue colour. 



NYCTANASSA. 



Nyctherodius, Reichenb. Av. Syst. Nat. p. xvi (1852, nee Macgill.) ; Ridgw. Bull. U. S. Gaol. & 



Geogr. Surv. iv. p. 225. 

 Nyctanassa, Stejn. Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. x. p. 295, note (1887) ; Sharpe^ Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. 



xxvi. p. 130 (1898). 



In comparison with Ardea, or even with Nycticorax, the bill of Nyctanassa is much 

 more massive and heavy, but not so long, and has no serrations on the edges of the 

 mandibles. The genus is, as might have been expected from its general appearance, 

 allied to the Night-Herons {Nycticorax), and we take from Mr. Ridgway's work 

 the following characters by which he distinguishes the genus Nyctanassa : — " Size 

 medium. Adult with several elongated, linear, compact-webbed occipital plumes. 

 Scapular plumes elongated, narrow, round-tipped, the webs somewhat decomposed. 

 Jugular feathers broad, blended. Culmen much shorter than tarsus (a little longer 

 than middle toe). Colour much variegated. Lateral outlines of the bill straight ; 

 genys very convex. Adult and young exceedingly different in plumage." 



One species only is known, N. violacea, which breeds in Eastern North America, and 

 visits Central and South America in winter. 



1. Nyctanassa violacea. 



The Crested Bittern, Catesby, Nat. Hist. Carol, i. t. 79 '. 



Ardea violacea, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 238 ^. 



Nycticorax violaceus, Boie, Isis, 1826, p. 979'; Scl. P. Z. S. 1860, p. 253'; Salv. Ibis, 1861, 

 p. 357 ' ; 1865, p. 191 " ; 1889, p. 376 ' ; v. Frantz. J. f. Orn. 1869, p. 376 ' ; Ferrari-Perez, 

 Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. ix. p. 170 ' ; Zeledon, An. Mus. Nac. Costa Rica, p. 131 " ; Townsend, 

 Pr.U. S. Nat. Mus.. xiii. p. 135"; Cherrie, Auk, 1892, p. 329"; A. O. U. Check-i. 

 N. Amer. Birds, 2nd ed. p. 74"; Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, no. 14, p. 33 ", 



Nyctherodius violaceus, Reichenb. Av. Syst. Nat. p. xvi"; Grayson, Pr. Bost. Soc. N. H. xiv. 



