. A history of British birds, indigenous and migratory: including their organization, habits, and relation; remarks on classification and nomenclature; an account of the principal organs of birds, and observations relative to practical ornithology .. . s, and often extending boyond the ample, of about twenty-eight q\iills, besides humerals,the outer three nearly equal. Tail short, nearly even, oftwelve feathers. Species of this genus occur on both continents—EgrettaLeuce, candidissima, and Ludoviciana of America, andEgretta nigrirostris, alba, flavirostris, and Garzetta of theOld Co
. A history of British birds, indigenous and migratory: including their organization, habits, and relation; remarks on classification and nomenclature; an account of the principal organs of birds, and observations relative to practical ornithology .. . s, and often extending boyond the ample, of about twenty-eight q\iills, besides humerals,the outer three nearly equal. Tail short, nearly even, oftwelve feathers. Species of this genus occur on both continents—EgrettaLeuce, candidissima, and Ludoviciana of America, andEgretta nigrirostris, alba, flavirostris, and Garzetta of theOld Continent being among the most characteristic. Theyfeed on fishes, reptiles, Crustacea, insects, small quadrupeds,young birds, and other animals. They are remarkable fortheir graceful movements, and in activity greatly surpass theHerons. Their flight is sedate, but buoyant. They nestlegenerally on trees or bushes, sometimes on the ground,laying three or four broadly elliptical light blue shy and suspicious with the Herons, they are withgreat difficulty approached, unless during the breedingseason. None of the species are resident in Britain, but two orthree have been met with there. 460 EGRETTA NIGRIROSTRIS. THE BLACK-BILLED Fig. 38. Egretta nlgrirostris. Bonap. Comp. List, 47. (.>) Length about three feet and two-thirds ; occipital feathersvery slighly elongated; dorsal plumes with the shaft stiffish,straight, and extending a little heyond the tail; plumagexohite; bill black, with the tip dtdl greenish-grey; bare pre-ocular space verdigris green; feet dingy flesh-coloured, butthe tarsal and digital scutella dusky. Male.—This species is superior in size to the CommonHeron, -which it greatly exceeds in elegance of form. Thebody is of moderate size, much compressed ; the neck verylong and slender ; the head rather small, oblong, and muchcompressed. The bill is long, stout, compressed, tapering;the upper mandible with the dorsal line straight for two-thir
Size: 2320px × 1077px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookidhistoryofbritishbi04mac, booksubjectbirds
