THE GREAT WHITE HERON. 119 



latter greenish-yellow; claws light brown. The whole of the plumage is 

 pure white. 



Length to end of tail 54 inches, to end of wings 54, to end of claws 70; 

 extent of wings S3; wing from flexure 19; tail 7; bill along the back 6f, 

 along the edges Sf; bare part of tibia 6; tarsus 8^; middle toe 4|§, its claw 

 £§. Weight 9£ lbs. 



The Female is smaller, but similar to the male. The dimensions of an 

 individual were as follows. 



Length to end of tail 50, to end of wings 50, to end of claws 65; extent 

 of wings 75; wing from flexure 18|; tail 6§; bill along the back 5j§, along 

 the edges 7f , its depth at base 1-^; tarsus 7^-; middle toe 4i, its claw -j^. 

 Weight 7i lbs. 



The Young are at first covered with white down, and when fledged, are 

 of the same colour. An individual just able to fly was of the following 

 dimensions. 



Length to end of tail 43|, to end of claws 56; wing from flexure 18; bill 

 5 T %; along the edge H; tarsus 6^; middle toe 4ij, its claw f . The serrature 

 of the middle claw is distinct at this age. 



In this species, the skin is uncommonly tender, and of a yellow colour. 



An adult male, received from Captain Napoleon Coste, of the United 

 States Revenue Cutter "Campbell/' The width of the mouth is li inches; 

 but the lower mandible is capable of being dilated to 2^ inches, by means of 

 an articulation on each side; the palate ascending, convex, with two longitu- 

 dinal ridges, anteriorly with two papillate ridges and a median ridge, which 

 runs to the point of the mandible; the posterior aperture of the nares linear, 

 1^ inches in length. Tongue 4% inches long, slender, tapering, trigonal, sa- 

 gittate at the base, with a large pointed papilla on each side, flat above, with 

 a median groove for half its length, afterwards convex, the tip acute. There 

 is a large gular sac, although covered by feathers. The oesophagus is 2 feet 

 7 inches long, of great width in its whole extent, its diameter opposite the 

 glottis being 2\ inches, in the other parts from 2 to If. Its walls are very 

 thin, but with the external muscular fibres distinct; the inner coat longitudi- 

 nally plicate. 



The heart is of moderate size, 1 inch 10 twelfths in length, ll in breadth. 

 The aorta branches immediately in the usual manner, sending off to the left 

 a common carotid and subclavian, which branches at the distance of 7^ 

 twelfths; to the right the same; and more to the same side, the carotid pro- 

 perly so called, which is smaller than either of the other vessels. The liver 

 is of moderate size, its lobes very unequal, the left 2^ inches, the right 3^ 

 inches in length. There is an enormous accumulation of fat in the omentum, 



