28 
ARDEA HERODIAS. 
any spots. The young are produced about the middle 
of May, and remain on the trees until they are full as 
heavy as the old ones, being extremely fat, before they 
are able to fly. They breed hut once in the season. 
If disturbed in their breeding place, the old birds fly 
occasionally over the spot, sometimes honking like a 
goose, sometimes uttering a coarse hollow grunting 
noise, like that of a hog, but much louder. 
The great heron is said to be fat at the full moon, 
and lean at its decrease ; this might be accounted for 
by the fact of their Ashing regularly by moonlight 
through the greater part of the night, as well as during 
the day ; but the observation is not universal, for at 
such times I have found some lean, as well as others 
fat. The young are said to be excellent for the table, 
and even the old birds, when in good order, and properly 
cooked, are esteemed by many. 
The principal food of the great heron is fish, for 
which he watches with the most unwearied patience, 
and seizes them with surprising dexterity. At the 
edge of the river, pond, or sea shore, he stands fixed 
and motionless, sometimes for hours together. But his 
stroke is as quick as thought, and sure as fate, to the 
first luckless fish that approaches within his reach ; 
these he sometimes beats to death, and always swallows 
head foremost, such being their uniform position in the 
stomach. He is also an excellent mouser, and of great 
service to our meadows, in destroying the short-tailed 
or meadow mouse, so injurious to the banks. He also 
feeds eagerly on grasshoppers, various winged insects, 
particularly dragon flies, which he is very expert at 
striking, and also eats the seeds of that species of 
nymphse usually called splatterdocks, so abundant along 
our fresh water ponds and rivers. 
The heron has great powers of wing, flying sometimes 
very high, and to a great distance ,* his neck doubled, 
his head drawn in, and his long legs stretched out 
in a right line behind him, appearing like a tail, and, 
probably, serving the same rudder-like office. When 
he leaves the sea coast, and traces, on wing, the courses, 
