i 
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The Herons of Alachua Co., Florida. 
[Concluded.] 
LITTLE BLUE HEIiON. 
Most common of all our Herons is tlie Ardea 
ccerulea. Countless thousands of these birds 
live around our lakes and wet prairies. Here 
they spend the summer days wading around in 
the shallow water cooling their feet and legs 
and filling themselves with fish and frogs. 
They accumulate in large colonies to breed, 
and construct their nests much like other 
Herons. 
The young birds at first are white and, 
before they begin to get their blue coat, are 
not easily distinguished from the Ardea can- 
didissima. When the blue feathers first begin 
to appear the birds look quite odd. Often 
one-half of the wing feathers will be blue 
while the remainder are still white; the rest 
of the body at the same time will have the 
same general appearance. 
In April, 1881 , I visited a colony of Little 
Blues nesting in a pond at Horse Hammock. 
There were, at least, five hundred pairs breed¬ 
ing here at this time. The number of eggs in 
a nest was usually four, sometimes three and 
occasionally five were found. In this rookery 
were also breeding five other varieties of 
Herons and several pairs of Anhingas. 
Another colony visited on April 8, 1800 , in a 
cypress swamp north of Waldo, Fla., con¬ 
tained no other birds but Little Blues. The 
nests were placed around on the cypress limbs 
at various heights. Often six or eight nests 
were seen in a single tree. At this date but 
few of the nests contained eggs and many of 
the new nests were not yet complete. 
Birds of Houston, Texas, and Vicin¬ 
ity - H, Nehriing 
169. Florida ccerulea Bd. Little Blue Heron. — This beautiful 
bird is exceedingly abundant in all suitable localities. Many are resident 
throughout the year, but most migrate further south in winter. They 
nest in large colonies in swamps and marshes overgrown thickly with 
bushes. I have always found the nest in the top of button-bushes (Cep/ta- 
l ant hits occidentalis). Eggs three or four, in one case five, in number. I 
have seen hundreds of nests in one pond. They are built entirely ol 
sticks without any lining. In the second week of May many eggs were 
already hatched. 
Bull N.O.O, 7,Qct, 1882, p ,223 
On a Oollestion of Hgg-a from 
Georgia, E.. B.BaAley, 
83. Florida Ccerulea. Little Blue Heron. — Nests in trees ; eggs 
three. April 15. 
Bull N.Q.O, S,Jan, 1383, p,42 
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