WILDLIFE OF THE ATLANTIC COAST SALT MARSHES 1 3 



the larger bird is grayish blue. The young are often white, but in- 

 termediate, spotted forms also occur. The dark bill and the smaller 

 size of the white phase distinguish it from the large egret, and the 

 greenish legs and dark feet from the small egret. Late in summer 

 the little blue heron may be seen almost anywhere along the coast, 

 but in winter and early summer as a rule only from North Carolina 

 southward. 



The egrets are white, the large or American egret (Oasmerodius 

 alius) having a yellow bill, and the small or snowy egret {Egretta 

 thula) yellow feet. These points must be seen to insure positive 

 identification. The former is about two-thirds, the latter about one- 

 third, the size of the great blue heron. The large egret breeds from 

 New Jersey south, wanders extensively in summer and early fall, 

 going north even into Canada, and retires in winter to the Gulf 

 coast and southward. The small egret formerly bred as far north 

 as New Jersey but now nests from North Carolina southward. In 

 summer it wanders to the same extent as the large species, then re- 

 turns to its southern breeding range for winter quarters. 



The egrets formerly were especially persecuted for their plumes, 

 or aigrettes, a practice that has not yet been entirely suppressed. It 

 has been stopped to such an extent, however, that the birds have 

 increased from numbers that were approaching the disappearing 

 point to relative abundance, the large species recovering more rapidly 

 than the small. In the first stages of the recovery process, the 

 birds resumed their northern wanderings in steadily increasing num- 

 bers and to more and more distant points, and later they reestab- 

 lished breeding colonies at points farther and farther to the north, 

 where they had formerly bred. The contraction of their popula- 

 tions to the south as their numbers decreased is an interesting phe- 

 nomenon, as the northern colonies were the least molested, the war 

 of the plume traders upon the birds being most intensive in the 

 South. 



The Louisiana heron (Hydranassa tricolor) , which is of about the 

 same size as the little blue heron, may be seen from the Carolinas 

 south. Standing, it appears more slender than other herons ; on the 

 wing, the dark head and neck, contrasting with the white body, 

 distinguish it. The green heron (Butorides virescens), the smallest 

 of the tribe here described, is about the bulk of a crow and appears 

 dark, although it is greenish above and reddish below. It frequents 

 bodies of water in woodlands but may occasionally visit salt marshes. 

 It winters from South Carolina southward. 



The black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) may be 

 seen in summer anywhere along the coast, and in winter from Vir- 

 ginia (casually from Massachusetts) south. Its bill is proportion- 

 ately thicker at the base than those of other herons; the top of the 

 head is black, and the general body color is bluish gray. The young 

 in their first winter are grayish brown, spotted and streaked with 

 white and rusty. Night herons nest in colonies in trees, often near 

 the coast, may visit salt marshes at that season in search of food, and 

 at other seasons may adopt the marshes as hunting grounds for pro 

 tracted periods. They are seen mostly in evenings and early morn- 

 ings but, true to their name, are active throughout the night. 



Besides the bittern, the vocal accomplishments of which already 

 have been mentioned (p. 0), other herons attract attention by pe- 



