202 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



April and mid- July to end October. Irish records suggest continua- 

 tion of these movements by E. coast Ireland. Very few records of 

 immigration E. coast and emigration S. coast England, September. 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Greater part of Europe and Asia south 

 of 60° north lat. (occasional straggler to Greenland, Iceland and 

 Faeroes), also parts of tropical India, Africa, south to Cape and 

 Orange River Colonies, In cold climates migratory. Casual 

 Madeira and Ascension. Replaced by allied forms in east Asia and 

 in Madagascar. 



ARDEA PURPUREA 



275. Ardea purpurea purpurea L.— THE PURPLE HERON. 



Abdea purpurea Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. xn, i, p. 236 (1766 — " Habitat 



in Oriente "). 



Ardea purpurea Linnaeus, Yarrell, iv, p. 172 ; Saunders, p. 369. 



Description. — Adult male and female. Winter and summer. — 

 Fore -head, crown and line down back of neck glossy-black (feathers 

 of crest as in Common Heron but shorter — longest 140 mm.) ; sides 

 of head and neck chestnut-buff, with narrow, somewhat broken, lines 

 of black (formed by feathers partially black and buff) from gape to 

 back of nape and down each side of neck for whole length ; mantle 

 dark oily-brown, but sometimes paler and greyer, feathers of lower 

 mantle with elongated and greyer or pale grey tips with grouped 

 rami as in Common Heron ; upper scapulars same structure but 

 larger and tips mostly pinkish-chestnut ; lower scapulars normal 

 and colour as mantle ; back, rump and upper tail-coverts as 

 mantle but usually rather greyer ; chin and cheeks white ; centre 

 of throat rather paler than sides of neck, lower half with feathers 

 half blackjand half buff ; feathers of lower -throat and upper-breast 

 with grey bases and rest buffish-white with black edgings and some 

 chestnut giving somewhat variegated appearance to these elongated, 

 pointed feathers ; breast deep chestnut with some partially black 

 feathers, belly with more black ; under tail-coverts black with white 

 bases ; tibia chestnut-buff ; flanks and axilliaries brownish-grey ; 

 lowest series of under wing-coverts same but rest chestnut ; tail- 

 feathers as rump ; primaries and primary-coverts black with more 

 or less grey tinge, secondaries greyer ; greater coverts with outer 

 webs brownish-grey and inner webs darker ; median and lesser 

 coverts brownish-grey usually with chestnut tinge on edges of 

 feathers, uppermost series of lesser coverts edged chestnut, and 

 feathers at point of wing entirely chestnut. This plumage is 

 acquired by complete moult June to Nov. (occasionally later, one 

 Feb.). A spring moult confined to body-feathers appears to take 

 place in April, but only two of a number of March and April birds 

 examined were in moult. 



Nestling. — Down of whole crown dark brown at base with 

 long, white bristle-like tips without rami, giving conspicuous crested 

 appearance as in Common Heron but down shorter and less plentiful, 



