8810 



Birds. 



bamboo-grove. This plantation of tall bamboos, mixed occasionally 

 with longans and other trees, was on a hemp-farm of some four acres, 

 which is entirely encircled. The flock of night herons, about two 

 hundred or more in number, showed themselves about this wood for 

 the first time in March. For a fortnight they merely made it their 

 roosting-site for the day. In April all was excitement, fighting and 

 building ; and towards the middle of the month many of the birds 

 were laying. In the first few days of April a large colony of egrets 

 came to the same trees, and about the middle of the month a large 

 flock of yellowheads [Buphus coromandus). At first the confusion 

 was very great, the flocks of the several species coming into constant 

 collision ; but before the end of April all seemed amicably arranged, 

 and you could often see on the same tree several nests of the three 

 distinct herons, the females of each sitting, and the males standing by 

 to protect. This large mingled heronry was a most interesting sight, 

 and many times on a fine evening I have taken boat and crossed over 

 to the heron farm to view it. The farm-house stood at one end of the 

 plantation ; and its inhabitants were always courteous and kind, and 

 allowed me to roam about their grounds as I pleased. A small wood 

 of large trees stood close to the cluster of huts, and these a party of 

 gray herons had made their home ; and here and there among the 

 bamboos you could observe a few of the yellowbilled egret. Thus, 

 within the precincts of these few acres, one had the opportunity of 

 watching and comparing the habits of no less than five interesting 

 species of herons. Few naturalists, I fancy, could ever have had such 

 an opportunity as this ; but my time was short, and I was obliged to 

 leave the country before Ardea cinerea and Herodias eulophotes had 

 commenced laying. The bamboos were mostly thirty or forty feet 

 high, bending and curving in all directions, and on almost every 

 available spot throughout their quivering lengths the wicker nests 

 were placed. As you made your way through the dung-stained her- 

 bage underneath, clouds of all the several species rose from the trees 

 above, and hovered about the air croaking and screaming. As soon 

 as you had stalked on a few paces, the birds alighted again on their 

 respective positions, and continued their avocations as before. The 

 bamboo is too unstable a tree to trust one's weight to at the height 

 required to be reached for the nests, and they were moreover covered 

 with prickles. I was therefore obliged to look to the dark-leaved 

 evergreen, the longan, for eggs. Out of one of these I procured 

 several eggs of three species — Buphus coromandus, Herodias garzetta, 

 and the Nycticorax. There were always three in each nest. The 



