Page:The birds of America, Volume 6.djvu/184

136 loaded and fired as fast as he could. Many of the birds lodged on the highest branches of the cypresses, others fell into the nest, and, in most cases, when shot from a limb, where they had been sitting, they clung to it for some time before they would let go. One thing surprised me: it was the length of time it took for a bird to fall from the place where it was shot, and it fell with a loud noise into the water. Many wounded birds fell some distance off, and we could not conveniently follow them on account of the heavy wading through the place. We brought home with us forty-six of the large White Herons, and three of the Great Blue. Many more might have been killed, but we became tired of shooting them." Ardea Egretta, Gmel. Syst. Nat., vol. i. p. 629. Great White Heron, Ardea Egretta, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. vii. p. 106. Ardea alba, Bonap. Syn., p. 304. Ardea Egretta, Wagler, Syst. Av. Great White Heron, Nutt. Man., vol. ii. p. 47. Great American Egret, Ardea Egretta, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. iv. p. 600. Male, 37, 57. Resident in Florida, and Galveston Bay in Texas. Migrates in spring sometimes as far as Massachusetts; up the Mississippi to Natchez. Breeds in all intermediate districts. Returns south before winter. Very abundant. Adult Male in summer. Bill much longer than the head, straight, compressed, tapering to a point, the mandibles nearly equal. Upper mandible with the dorsal line nearly straight, the ridge broad and slightly convex at the base, narrowed and becoming rather acute towards the end, a groove from the base to two-thirds of the length, beneath which the sides are convex, the edges thin and sharp, with a notch close to the acute tip. Nostrils basal, linear, longitudinal, with a membrane above and behind. Lower mandible with the angle extremely narrow and elongated, the dorsal line beyond it ascending and almost straight, the edges sharp and direct, the tip acuminate. Head small, oblong, compressed. Neck very long and slender. Body slender and compressed. Feet very long, tibia elongated, its lower half bare, slender, covered anteriorly and laterally with hexagonal scales, posteriorly with scutella; tarsus elongated, compressed, covered anteriorly with nume- rous scutella, some of which are divided laterally and posteriorly with angular scales. Toes of moderate length, rather slender, scutellate above, granulate beneath; third toe considerably longer than the fourth, which exceeds the second; the first large; the claws of moderate length, rather strong, arched, compressed, rather acute, that of the hind toe much larger, the inner edge of that of the third regularly pectinated.