192 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



and Purple Herons, beautiful Snowy Egrets, to the little dwarf 

 Bitterns. Every piece of water — I speak chiefly of Bengal — has 

 its Herons in some form or another, and none are so common as 

 the " Paddy-bird." Its colour, as it patiently waits for its finny 

 prey, so blends with its surroundings as to make it almost in- 

 visible ; but as it is disturbed it flies up, uttering a harsh croak, 

 and displaying its conspicuous white wings — in fact, another 

 " Surprise Bird." In the breeding season it is a lovely creature, 

 resembling the Squacco Heron (A. ralloides) of Europe, to 

 which it is closely allied. The breeding plumes of this and other 

 Herons are much sought after by a class of natives whose busi- 

 ness it is to snare birds, and a good price they fetch — or used to 

 fetch — in the Calcutta market. Thanks to the trouble a lot of 

 people have taken in India, a society for the protection of birds 

 has sprung up, and the Herons, with many others, come under 

 its influence. Such a good work as this deserves every support, 

 for what would a country be without its birds ? And the Herons 

 are a family of birds we could ill afford to lose, and, as I have 

 said before, add much to the charm of many an Indian land- 

 scape. 



The above number of birds I have written about are only a 

 small percentage of those found in and around Indian gardens, 

 and a whole volume might be written on the avian inhabitants 

 of these alone. To the naturalist birds are a source of never- 

 failing interest, and thanks to them I have been able to spend 

 many a long Indian day with full enjoyment, when otherwise 

 time would have hung heavily on my hands. 



