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 80 THE CONDOR VOL. X they rose as one and finally lit about a quarter of a mile away where they remained until our visit was over. Young birds not quite able to use their wings were walking away about 100 yards off. Others not so large were hiding in bunches of grass and in the shelter of slough banks. When we were within the colony proper one-third of the nests were vacant and their young were walking around somewhere, to be kicked up by our feet almost anywhere. The colony consisted of 49 nests and covered an area of about 200 feet by 100 feet. The nests were built always upon the very edge of the little sloughs of three or four feet depth, and were sometimes .within five feet of each other and as far as twenty feet apart; but usually about ten feet was spaced between nests. All nests were constructed of the dried branches of the common marsh grass, and were quite serviceable structures. They 'I'YPICAI, NEST AND EGGS OF THE GREAT BLUE HERON able to be both seen and heard. varied in size from two feet in diameter flat on the ground to four feet across and 14 in- ches in hight. Nearly all nests were built upon an old one, and probably in a few years quite high monuments will be erected. The contents of the nests varied from fresh empty nests to those contain- ing young about big enough to find their way home again. Sets of eggs were 2, 3 and 4, and both fresh and incubated eggs were plentiful. The young birds were of course the most interesting to study. One lone young- ster just hatched was trying to eat up his shell. The noise of the squeaking beauties(?) at times was quite inconceiv- able, especially from the ones about three weeks old. These had raised a good growth of feathers, and being about the size of good "broilers" were They would make frantic efforts to spear us when we were within ten feet, and especially during the focusing of a camera they were never still. So rapid were their spear-like thrusts that most of the pictures are a blurred streak. The young birds which still retained their down were the least interesting. They would sit quietly-until poked, when they' would rise up and make ready to bite the intruder. Their noise was quite different from the large birds, being a continual low lone- some cluck. Some of the little fellows were suffering from the heat and it is probable that when weak from hunger many die under the blistering summer sun. Some of the young birds were about the size of a Bittern, and these were con-