Herons, Ralxs, Etc. 227 
Of the true herons there are several species in the 
United States, of which in the New England and 
Middle States the Great and Little Blue Herons are 
the best known. The former is a migratory species 
and also resident. In New Jersey and Eastern Penn- 
sylvania there is annually a considerable number of 
these birds from April to October, but during the 
winter the number is small. When they come, in 
early spring, and have no shelter, they are very shy, 
and seem much more intent upon guarding against 
surprise than upon securing food. At times they 
will appear in the level, open meadows, and fish in 
the ditches, but never wander near to any bushes or 
clump of trees in which some foe may be lurking. . 
Later, when the foliage is out and there is “cover” 
in the larger trees, these birds will sit in them by the 
hour motionless and silent, but at dusk they will fly 
abroad and utter a hoarse cry at brief intervals. 
Still, they are in no sense nocturnal, and can be 
found food-hunting at all hours of the day. This 
food consists of anything in the way of an animal 
that can be swallowed, an exception probably being 
young turtles. I have known one of these great blue 
herons to swallow nearly every one of a large school 
of catfish. Frogs, of course, are eagerly snapped 
up, and meadow-mice, crayfish, and even coleop- 
terous larve are not overlooked. One that I had in 
captivity demonstrated how strictly omnivorous they 
are so far as regards a meat diet. 
The Little Blue Heron is in most of its habits the 
same as the preceding, with a tendency to remain 
quiet in the daytime. They come in small numbers 
