See also:

• HERON (Fr. heron; Ital. aghirone, airone; Lat. ardea; Gr. ipw&bs: A.-S. hragra; Icelandic, hegre; Swed. hager; Dan. heire; Ger. Heiger, Reiher, Heergans; Dutch, reiger)

HERON (Fr. heron; Ital. aghirone, airone; See also:

• LAT

Lat. See also:

• ARDEA

ardea; Gr. ipw&bs: A.-S. hragra; Icelandic, hegre; Swed. hager; See also:

• DAN

Dan. heire; Ger. Heiger, Reiher, Heergans; Dutch, reiger)  , a See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long-necked, long-winged and long-legged See also:

• BIRD

bird, the typical representative of the See also:

• GROUP

group Ardeidae . It is difficult or even impossible to estimate with any accuracy the number of See also:

• SPECIES

species of Ardeidae which exist . See also:

• PROFESSOR (the Latin noun formed from the verb profiteri, to declare publicly, to acknowledge, profess)

Professor See also:

• HERMANN, JOHANN GOTTFRIED JAKOB (1772–1848)
• HERMANN, KARL FRIEDRICH (1804–1855)

Hermann See also:

• SCHLEGEL, AUGUST WILHELM VON (1767-1845)
• SCHLEGEL, JOHANN ELIAS (1719-1749)
• SCHLEGEL, KARL WILHELM FRIEDRICH VON (1772-1829)

Schlegel in 1863 enumerated 61, besides 5 of what he terms " conspecies," as contained in the collection at See also:

• LEYDEN, JOHN (1775-1811)

Leyden (See also:

• MUS

Mus. See also:

• DES

des Pays-Bas, Ardeae, 64 pp.),—on the other See also:

• HAND
• HAND (a word common to Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Hand, Goth. handus)
• HAND, FERDINAND GOTTHELF (1786-185r)

hand, G . R . See also:

• GRAY
• GRAY (or GREY), WALTER DE (d. 1255)
• GRAY, ASA (1810-1888)
• GRAY, DAVID (1838-1861)
• GRAY, ELISHA (1835-1901)
• GRAY, HENRY PETERS (1819-18/7)
• GRAY, HORACE (1828–1902)
• GRAY, JOHN DE (d. 1214)
• GRAY, JOHN EDWARD (1800–1875)
• GRAY, PATRICK GRAY, 6TH BARON (d. 1612)
• GRAY, ROBERT (1809-1872)
• GRAY, SIR THOMAS (d. c. 1369)
• GRAY, THOMAS (1716-1771)

Gray in 1871 (Handlist, &c. iii . 26-34) admitted above 9o, while Dr Anton Reichenow (Journ. See also:

• FUR (connected with O. Fr. forre, a sheath or case; so " an outer covering ")

fur Ornithologie, 1877, pp . 232-275) recognizes 67 as known, besides 15 " subspecies " and 3 varieties, arranging them in 3 genera, Nycticorax, Botaurus and See also:

• ARDEA

Ardea, with 17 sub-genera . But it is difficult to See also:

• SEPARATE

separate the See also:

• FAMILY

family, with any satisfactory result, into genera, if structural characters have to be found for these See also:

• GROUPS
• GROUPS, THEORY

groups, for in many cases they run almost insensibly into each other—though in See also:

• COMMON

common See also:

• LANGUAGE (adapted from the Fr. langage, from langue, tongue, Lat. lingua)

language it is 1 easy to speak .of herons, egrets, bitterns, See also:

• NIGHT

night-herons and boatbills . With the exception of the last, Professor Schlegel retains all in the genus Ardea, dividing it into eight sections, the names of which may perhaps be Englished—See also:

• GREAT

great herons, small herons, egrets, semi-egrets, See also:

• RAIL

rail-like herons, little bitterns, bitterns and night-herons . The common See also:

• HERON (Fr. heron; Ital. aghirone, airone; Lat. ardea; Gr. ipw&bs: A.-S. hragra; Icelandic, hegre; Swed. hager; Dan. heire; Ger. Heiger, Reiher, Heergans; Dutch, reiger)

heron of See also:

• EUROPE

Europe, Ardea cinerea of See also:

• LINNAEUS

Linnaeus, is universally allowed to be the type of the family, and it may also be regarded as that of Professor Schlegel's first See also:

• SECTION
• SECTION (Lat. sectio, cutting, secare, to cut)

section . The species inhabits suitable localities throughout the whole of Europe, See also:

• AFRICA
• AFRICA, ROMAN

Africa and See also:

• ASIA

Asia, reaching See also:

• JAPAN

Japan, many of the islands of the See also:

• INDIAN

Indian See also:

• ARCHIPELAGO

Archipelago and even See also:

• AUSTRALIA

Australia . Though by no means so numerous as formerly in See also:

• BRITAIN (Gr. Hperavuml vi7vot, Bperravia; Lat. Britannia, rarely Britannia)

Britain, it is still sufficiently common,' and there must be few persons who have not seen it rising slowly from some See also:

• RIVER

river-See also:

• SIDE
• SIDE (mod. Eski Adalia)

side or marshy See also:

• FLAT (a modification of O. Eng. flet, an obsolete word of Teutonic origin, meaning the ground beneath the feet)

flat, or passing over-See also:

• HEAD (in 0. Eng. heafad; the word is common to Teutonic languages; cf. Dutch hoofd, Ger. Haupt, generally taken to be in origin connected with Lat. caput, Gr. KerbOvi7)
• HEAD, SIR EDMUND WALKER, BART
• HEAD, SIR FRANCIS BOND, BART

head in its lofty and leisurely See also:

• FLIGHT

flight on its way to or from its daily haunts; while they are many who have been entertained by watching it as it sought its See also:

• FOOD
• FOOD (like the verb " to feed," from a Teutonic root, whence O. Eng. foda; cf. " fodder "; connected with Gr. lrareicOae, to feed)

food, consisting chiefly of fishes (especially eels and flounders) and amphibians—though See also:

• YOUNG
• YOUNG, A
• YOUNG, ARTHUR (1741-1820)
• YOUNG, BRIGHAM (1801-1877)
• YOUNG, CHARLES MAYNE (1777–1856)
• YOUNG, EDWARD (1683–1765)
• YOUNG, JAMES (1811-1883)
• YOUNG, THOMAS (1773-1829)

young birds and small mammals come not amiss—wading midleg in the shallows, See also:

• SWIMMING (from " swim," A.S. swimman, the root being common in Teutonic languages)

swimming occasionally when out of its See also:

• DEPTH

depth, or See also:

• STANDING

standing motionless to strike its See also:

• PREY (0. Fr. preie, mod. proie, Lat. praeda, booty, from prae and the root hed—seen in prehendere, prendere, to grasp)

prey with its formidable and sure See also:

• BEAK (early forms beke and becke, from Fr. bec, late Lat. beccus, supposed to be a Gaulish word; the Celtic bec and beq, however, are taken from the English)

beak .

When sufficiently numerous the heron breeds in See also:

• SOCIETIES, LEARNED

societies, known as heronries, which of old See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time were protected both by See also:

• LAW
• LAW (0. Eng. lagu, M. Eng. lawe; from an old Teutonic root lag, " lie," what lies fixed or evenly; cf. Lat. lex, Fr. loi)
• LAW, JOHN (1671—1729)
• LAW, WILLIAM (1686-1761)

law and See also:

• CUSTOM (from O. Fr. costume, costume or coustume; Low Lat. costuma, a shortened form of consuetudo)

custom in nearly all See also:

• EUROPEAN

European countries, on See also:

• ACCOUNT
• ACCOUNT (through O. Fr. acont, Late Lat. comptum, cornputare, to calculate)

account of the See also:

• SPORT (a contracted or shortened form of "disport," to amuse, divert oneself, O. Fr. se dis porter or deporter, to leave off work, hence to play, Lat. dis-, away, and portare, to carry; the origin of the meaning lies in the notion of turning away from ser

sport their tenants afforded to the See also:

• FALCONER, HUGH (18o8–1865)
• FALCONER, WILLIAM (1732–1769)

falconer . Of See also:

• LATE

late years, partly owing to the withdrawal of the See also:

• PROTECTION

protection they had enjoyed, and still more, it would seem, from agricultural improvement, which, by draining See also:

• MERES, FRANCIS (1565-1647)

meres, See also:

• FENS

fens and marshes, has abolished the feeding-places of a great See also:

• POPULATION (Lat. populus, people; populare, to populate)

population of herons, many of the larger heronries have broken up—the birds composing them dispersing to neighbouring localities and forming smaller settlements, most of which are hardly to be dignified by the name of heronry, though commonly accounted such . Thus the number of so-called heronries in the See also:

• UNITED

United See also:

• KINGDOM

Kingdom, and especially in See also:

• ENGLAND
• ENGLAND, THE CHURCH OF

England and See also:

• WALES (Cymru, Gwalia, Cambria)

Wales, has become far greater than formerly, but no one can doubt that the number of herons has dwindled . The sites chosen by the heron for its See also:

• NEST

nest vary greatly . It is generally built in the See also:

• TOP (cf. Dan. top, Ger. Topf, also meaning pot)

top of a lofty See also:

• TREE (0. Eng. treo, treow, cf. Dan. tree, Swed. Odd, tree, trd, timber; allied forms are found in Russ. drevo, Gr. opus, oak, and 36pv, spear, Welsh derw, Irish darog, oak, and Skr. dare, wood)
• TREE, SIR HERBERT BEERBOHM (1853- )

tree, but not unfrequently (and this seems to have been much more usual in former days) near or on the ground among rough vegetation, on an See also:

• ISLAND (O.E. ieg =isle, +land')

island in a See also:

• LAKE
• LAKE, GERARD LAKE, 1ST VISCOUNT (1744-1808)

lake, or again on a rocky cliff of the See also:

• COAST (from Lat. costa, a rib, side)

coast . It commonly consists of a huge See also:

• MASS (O.E. maesse; Fr. messe; Ger. Messe; Ital. messa; from eccl. Lat. missa)
• MASS, IN

mass of sticks, often the See also:

• ACCUMULATION (from Lat. accumulare, to heap up)

accumulation of years, lined with twigs, and in it are laid from four to six See also:

• SEA (in O. Eng. sae, a common Teutonic word; cf. Ger. See, Dutch Zee, &c.; the ultimate source is uncertain)
• SEA, COMMAND OF THE

sea-See also:

• GREEN, A
• GREEN, ALEXANDER HENRY (1832—1896)
• GREEN, DUFF (1791—1875)
• GREEN, JOHN RICHARD (1837—1883)
• GREEN, MATTHEW (1696-1737)
• GREEN, THOMAS HILL (1836-1882)
• GREEN, VALENTINE (1739–1813)
• GREEN, WILLIAM HENRY (.1825–1900)

green eggs . The young are clothed in soft See also:

• FLAX

flax-coloured down, and remain in the nest for a consider-able time, therein differing remarkably from the " pipers " of the See also:

• CRANE (in Dutch, Kraan; O. Ger. Kraen; cognate, as also the Lat. grus, and consequently the Fr. grue and Span. grulla, with the Gr. dpavos)
• CRANE, STEPHEN (1870-1900)
• CRANE, WALTER (1845– )
• CRANE, WILLIAM HENRY (1845– )

crane, which are able to run almost as soon as they are hatched . The first feathers assumed by young herons in a See also:

• GENERAL
• GENERAL (Lat. generalis, of or relating to a genus, kind or class)

general way resemble those of the adult, but the pure See also:

• WHITE
• WHITE, ANDREW DICKSON (1832– )
• WHITE, GILBERT (1720–1793)
• WHITE, HENRY KIRKE (1785-1806)
• WHITE, HUGH LAWSON (1773-1840)
• WHITE, JOSEPH BLANCO (1775-1841)
• WHITE, RICHARD GRANT (1822-1885)
• WHITE, ROBERT (1645-1704)
• WHITE, SIR GEORGE STUART (1835– )
• WHITE, SIR THOMAS (1492-1567)
• WHITE, SIR WILLIAM ARTHUR (1824--1891)
• WHITE, SIR WILLIAM HENRY (1845– )
• WHITE, THOMAS (1628-1698)
• WHITE, THOMAS (c. 1550-1624)

white See also:

• BREAST (a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. the Ger. Brust, possibly connected with an O. Sax. brustian, to bud)

breast, the See also:

• BLACK
• BLACK, ADAM (1784-1874)
• BLACK, JEREMIAH SULLIVAN (1810–1883)
• BLACK, WILLIAM (1841-1898)

black See also:

• THROAT (O. Eng. protu, prote or }Prota, possibly from preotan, to press, whence threat, or, with loss of initial s, connected with strut, to swell)

throat-streaks and especially the long pendent plumes, which characterize only the very old birds, and are most beautiful in the cocks, are subsequently acquired . The heron See also:

• MEASURES

measures about 3 ft. from the See also:

• BILL

bill to the tail, and the expanse of its wings is sometimes not less than 6 ft., yet it weighs only between 3 and 4 m• Large as is the common heron of Europe, it is exceeded in See also:

• SIZE

size by the great See also:

• BLUE (common in different forms to most European languages)

blue heron of See also:

• AMERICA

America (Ardea herodias), which generally resembles it in See also:

• APPEARANCE (from Lat. apparere, to appear)

appearance and habits, and both are smaller than the A. sumatrana or A. See also:

• TYPHON (TYPHAON, TYPHOEUS)

typhon of See also:

• INDIA
• INDIA, FRENCH

India and the See also:

• MALAY

Malay Archipelago, while the A. See also:

• GOLIATH

goliath, of wide See also:

• DISTRIBUTION (Lat. distribuere, to deal out)

distribution in Africa and Asia, is the largest of all . The See also:

• PURPLE

purple heron, A. purpurea, as a well-known European species having a great range over the Old See also:

• WORLD

World, also deserves mention here . The species included in Professor Schlegel's second section inhabit the tropical parts of Africa, See also:

• AUSTRALASIA

Australasia and America . The egrets, forming his third group, require more See also:

• NOTICE

notice, distinguished as they are by their pure white plumage, and, when in breeding-See also:

• DRESS (from the Fr. dresser, to set out, arrange, formed from Lat. directus, arranged, dirigere, to direct, arrange)

dress, by ' In many parts of England it is generally called a " hernser "—being a corruption of " heronsewe," which, as Professor See also:

• SKEAT, WALTER WILLIAM (1835– )

Skeat states (Etymol .

See also:

• DICTIONARY

Dictionary, p . 264), is a perfectly distinct word from " heronshaw," commonly confounded with it . The further corruption of " hernser " into " handsaw," as in the well-known See also:

• PROVERB (Lat. proverbium, from pro, forth, publicly, verbum, word; the Greek equivalent is irapolµia, from 7rapa, alongside, and oiµos, way, road, i.e. a wayside saying; Ger. Sprichwort)

proverb, was easy in the mouth of men to whom hawking the heronsewe was unfamiliar-the beautiful dorsal tufts of decothposed feathers that ordinarily droop over the tail, and are so highly esteemed as ornaments by See also:

• ORIENTAL

Oriental magnates . The largest species is A. occidentalis, only known apparently from See also:

• FLORIDA

Florida and See also:

• CUBA (the aboriginal name)

Cuba; but one not much less, the great egret (A. See also:

• ALBA

alba), belongs to the Old World, breeding regularly in See also:

• SOUTH
• SOUTH, ROBERT (1634–1716)

south-eastern Europe, and occasionally straying to Britain . A third, A. egretta, represents it in America, while much the same may be said of two smaller species, A. garzetta, the little egret of See also:

• ENGLISH

English authors, and A. candidissima; and a See also:

• SIXTH

sixth, A. intermedia, is common in India, See also:

• CHINA

China and Japan, besides occurring in Australia . The group of semi-egrets, containing some nine or ten forms, among which the See also:

• BUFF (from Fr. bu.ffie, a buffalo)

buff-backed heron (A. bubulcus), is the only species that is known to have occurred in Europe, is hardly to be distinguished from the last section except by their plumage being at certain seasons varied in some species with slaty-blue and in others with rufous . The rail-like herons See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form Professor Schlegel's next section, but it can scarcely be satisfactorily differentiated, and the epithet is misleading, for its members have no rail-like See also:

• AFFINITIES

affinities, though the typical species, which inhabits the south of Europe, and occasionally finds its way to England, has long been known as A. ralloides' Nearly all these birds are tropical or subtropical . Then there is the somewhat better defined group of little bitterns, containing about a dozen species—the smallest of the whole family . One of them, A. minuta, though very See also:

• LOCAL

local in its distribution, is a native of the greater See also:

• PART

part of Europe, and has bred in England . It has a See also:

• CLOSE
• CLOSE (from Lat. clausum, shut)
• CLOSE, MAXWELL HENRY (1822-1903)

close counterpart in the A. exilic of See also:

• NORTH
• NORTH, BARONS
• NORTH, MARIANNE (1830—1890)
• NORTH, ROGER (1653-1734)
• NORTH, SIR THOMAS (1535?-16o1?)

North America, and is represented by three or four forms in other parts of the world, the A. pusilla of Australia especially differing very slightly from it . Ranged by Professor Schlegel with these birds, which are all remarkable for their skulking habits, but more resembling the true herons in their nature, are the common green See also:

• BITTERN
• BITTERN (from " bitter ")

bittern of America (A. virescens) and its very near ally the See also:

• AFRICAN

African A. atricapilla, from which last it is almost impossible to distinguish the A, javanica, of wide range throughout Asia and its islands, while other species, less closely related, occur elsewhere as A. favicollis —one form of which, A. gouldi, inhabits Australia . The true bitterns, forming the genus Botaurus of most authors, seem to be fairly separable, but more perhaps on account of their wholly nocturnal habits and correspondingly adapted plumage than on strictly structural grounds, though some See also:

• DIFFERENCES, CALCULUS OF (Theory of Finite Differences)

differences of proportion are observable .

The common bittern (q.v.) of 2 It is the " Squacco-Heron " of See also:

• MODERN

modern See also:

• BRITISH

British authors--the distinctive name, given " Sguacco " by See also:

• WILLUGHBY, FRANCIS (1635—1672)

Willughby and See also:

• RAY (Lat. raia)
• RAY (or WRAY, as he wrote his name till 1670), JOHN (1628-1705)

Ray from Aldrovandus, having been misspelt by Latham . 388 Europe (B. stellaris), is widely distributed over the eastern hemisphere.' Australia and New See also:

• ZEALAND (also SEALAND Or SEELAND; Danish Sjaelland)

Zealand have a.kindred species, B. poeciloptilus, and North America a third, B. mugitans2 or B. lenliginosus . Nine other species from various parts of the world are admitted by Professor Schlegel, but some of them should perhaps be excluded from the genus Botaurus . Of the night-herons the same author recognizes six species, all of which may be reasonably placed in the genus Nyclicorax, characterized by a shorter beak and a few other peculiarities, among which the large eyes deserve mention . The first is N. griseus, a bird widely spread over the Old World, and not unfrequently visiting England, where it would undoubtedly breed if permitted . Professor Schlegel unites with it the common night-heron of America; but this, though very closely allied, is generally deemed distinct, and is the N. See also:

• NAEVIUS, GNAEUS (c. 264–? 194 B.C.)

naevius or N. gardeni of most writers . A clearly different See also:

• AMERICAN

American species, with a more See also:

• SOUTHERN

southern See also:

• HABITAT (a French word derived from habiter, Lat. habitare, to dwell)

habitat, is the N. violaceus or N. cayennensis, while others are found in South America, Australia, some of the See also:

• ASIATIC

Asiatic Islands and in See also:

• WEST
• WEST, BENJAMIN (1738-1820)
• WEST, NICHOLAS (1461-1533)

West Africa . The Galapagos have a See also:

• PECULIAR

peculiar species, N. pauper, and another, so far as is known, peculiar to See also:

• RODRIGUEZ (officially RODRIGUES)

Rodriguez, N. megacephalus, existed in that island at the time of its being first colonized, but is now See also:

• EXTINCT

extinct . The boatbill, of which only one species is known, seems to be merely a night-heron with an exaggerated bill, —so much widened as to suggest its English name, —but has al- ways been allowed generic See also:

• RANK (O.Fr. rant or rent, mod. rang, generally connected with the O.E. and O.H.G. bring, a ring)

rank . This curious bird, the Cancroma cochlearia of most authors, is a native of tropical America, and what is known of its habits shows that they are essentially those of a Nycticorax 3 Bones of the common heron and bittern are not uncommon in the See also:

• PEAT (possibly connected with Med. Lat. petia, pecia, piece, ultimately of Celtic origin; cf. O. Celt. pet, O. Ir. pit, Welsh peth, portion)

peat of the See also:

• EAST
• EAST, ALFRED (1849- )

East-Anglian fens . Remains from Sansan and Langy in See also:

• FRANCE
• FRANCE, ANATOLE (1844– )

France have been referred by See also:

• ALPHONSE, COUNT OF TOULOUSE AND OF POITIERS (I220-1271)

Alphonse Milne-See also:

• EDWARDS, AMELIA ANN BLANDFORD (1831-1892)
• EDWARDS, BELA BATES (18o2-1852)
• EDWARDS, BRYAN (1743–1800)
• EDWARDS, GEORGE (1693–1773)
• EDWARDS, HENRY THOMAS (1837–1884)
• EDWARDS, JONATHAN (1703—1758)
• EDWARDS, LEWIS (1806–1887 )
• EDWARDS, RICHARD (c. 1523–1566)
• EDWARDS, T
• EDWARDS, THOMAS CHARLES (1837–1900)

Edwards to herons under the names of Ardea perplexa and A. See also:

• FORMOSA
• FORMOSA (called Taiwan by the Chinese, and following them by the Japanese, into whose possession it came after their war with China in 1895)

formosa; a See also:

• TIBIA

tibia from the See also:

• MIOCENE

Miocene of Steinheim am Albuch by Dr See also:

• FRAAS, KARL NIKOLAS

Fraas See also:

• TOWN

town A. similis, while See also:

• SIR

Sir R . See also:

• OWEN, JOHN (1616-1683)
• OWEN, JOHN [OVENUS Or AUDOENUS] (c. 1560-1622)
• OWEN, ROBERT (1771-1858)
• OWEN, SIR HUGH (1804-1881)
• OWEN, SIR RICHARD (1804–1892)

Owen recognized a portion of a sternum from the See also:

• LONDON

London See also:

• CLAY (from O. Eng. claeg, a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages, cf. Ger. Klei)
• CLAY, CASSIUS MARCELLUS (1810-1903)
• CLAY, CHARLES (1801–1893)
• CLAY, FREDERIC (1838–1889)
• CLAY, HENRY (1777–1852)

Clay as most nearly approaching this family .

It remains to say that the herons form part of See also:

• HUXLEY, THOMAS HENRY (1825–1895)

Huxley's section Pelargomorphae, belonging to his larger group Desmognathae, and to draw See also:

• ATTENTION (from Lat. ad-tendo, await, expect; the condition of being " stretched " or " tense ")

attention to the singular development of the patches of " See also:

• POWDER (through O. Fr. puldre, modern poudre, from Lat. pulvis, pulveris, dust)

powder-down " which in the family Ardeidae attain a magnitude hardly to be found elsewhere . Their use is utterly unknown . (A .