101 
The Heron feeds generally in the early morning 
or the grey of the evening, retiring to rest during the 
day on some tall tree on a hill-side, and sometimes 
resting in the middle of a large field. I have sprung 
them more than once close to the bottom of the rock 
of Kinnoull Hill, directly below the tower, where 
they were roosting in spruce firs—rather an out-of-the- 
way place for such a bird. They are also to be found 
very frequently resting on the Bin Hill, a little be¬ 
yond Kinfaun’s Castle, where there are a number of 
very tall trees, which form one of their favourite 
resting places. I know of specimens having been got 
on set-lines (lines set all night for trout) bated with 
worms, and one of these captured birds wounded a 
grown-up man very severely. The bill of the A. 
cinerea is serrated, the teeth pointing inwards, thus 
being well suited for holding whatever it seizes, and 
small is the chance of the luckless fish that comes 
within reach of it. When engaged in fishing, wading 
to the knees, the Heron may easily be mistaken at a 
short distance for the stump or root of an old tree— 
so motionless and still does it stand. Its quiet wait¬ 
ing for the coming of its prey is a rare example of 
patience to all “ Waltonians.’’ The Heron is a very 
wary bird, and difiB.cult to get at, unless there is pretty 
good cover, when it may be easily reached. I am 
therefore inclined to think that the bird depends 
more on its sense of sight for safety than on hearing. 
When it is brought down with a broken wing only a 
bold dog can take it, as it fights to the last, and very 
often with some effect, aiming always at the eye of 
the foe. In the old days of falconry, it was consi¬ 
dered a quarry equal to a couple of falcons. The 
Heron was lately, or still is, one of the birds on our 
game list. The nearest Heronry to Perth is at Inver- 
may, and there is another a Meikleour (where the 
birds build the same as rooks, in a rookery) ; still, 
there are occasional single nests to be met with. The 
Heron lays generally three eggs, of a greenish colour. 
The male bird is smaller than the female, and they 
are not good to eat. 
Numenius arquata —the Curlew or Whaup.—This 
is another of our large, strong, and handsome birds. 
