Botaurus lentiginosus . 
Concord, Mass. 
# 
1893. 
May 14. 
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As I was crossing the meadows at about 5 P.M. I stood 
in towards the south shore in hopes of’ seeing the Bittern 
which I heard there when I suddenly spied three Great Blue 
Herons. X x X X After passing the Herons I discovered the Bit- 
\v< c-g 
tern among some low bushes above which his^and a portion of 
the neck protruded. The sunlight struck full on the side of 
the head and neck which exactly resembled a cluster of stems 
of bldached grass. After awhile the head and neck turned a- 
✓ 
way from me so slowly that I could detect no motion whatever 
but as the grayish crown and rjlape were presented in my direc¬ 
tion they formed what looked predisely like a weathered, bark¬ 
less stake. Indeed for a while I thought that the Bittern had 
skulked off and that I was really watching a stake. At length 
the head came slowly back to its first position. Then the 
bill opened and shut five times in succession with a spiteful 
snapping motion the white throat dilating and flashing be¬ 
tween the snaps as if the bird were gulping in air, the usual 
plumbing sound accompanying each gulp. The snaps became more 
and more rapid and emphatic until immediately after the fifth 
and last the bird pumped three times. With the first syllable 
( pump ) the bill was opened wide and jerked downward a little 
below the horizontal, at the next syllable (er) it was tossed 
upward apparently closed or nearly so, at the last syllable 
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