132 
THE HERON. 
There is a very extraordinary light, said to he 
visible on the breast of a species of the American 
Bittern; and most, if not all the birds of the Heron 
genus, especially our common Heron, have on their 
breasts a considerable space void of feathers, filled 
up by tufts of down, to which adheres a sort of 
clammy oily substance. It is not therefore unlikely 
that this oily matter may, either by smoothing the 
water or in some other way, enable the bird to attract, 
or, when attracted, to strike its prey w T ith greater 
certainty. This idea is strengthened by a generally 
prevailing opinion respecting the Fish-Hawk of 
North America, which, when hovering over the 
w r ater, is supposed to have some attractive powder over 
its prey, upon which, when collected within reach, it 
pounces. The charm is believed to be an oil contained 
in a small bag in the body, as baits touched with a 
drop of it are considered to be an irresistible lure for 
all sorts of fish. 
The Heron's feathers are also occasionally found 
loaded with a blue powder, which may possibly 
serve its purpose in some way not hitherto dis- 
covered. Their appetite is in proportion to their 
powers of digestion. A heron was once seen to dart 
upon a large eel, and after killing it by repeatedly 
dashing it against the ground, gulp it all down. 
We have known another to consume no less than 
five moderate-sized eels at a single meal, which the 
glutton seemed quite ready to repeat within a very 
short time after. 
Storks and Cranes are not, like the Heron, sta- 
tionary, but even in the countries to which they are 
most attached, are regular birds of passage ; but so 
