shortish appressed feathers ; and by having a very large part of
'the tibia naked.
- The second, ealled Bittern; {JBotqums,) has the neck shortish,
wish loose, longish feathers, and the' posterior more or less distichous
and lanuginous : the naked part of the tibia is muehTimited.
In all the Herons the bill is more or less longer than the head,
eleft to beneath the eyes, straight,' compressed, conie;elongate,
acuminate and very acute, higher than wide, and more or- less.
i*obust. Both mandibles are near their base covered with a kind
. of very thin cere or membrane : thé upper is scarcely longer than
the lower mandible, and equal in height it. is longitudinally
impressed on the sides with a straight furrow obliterated before :
the upper ridge is “ therefore rather distinct and . flat at base,
terminated by the frontal feathers transversely placed,; towards
the- point the ridge is perfectly smooth, eompressedj and slightly
and gradually inclined' at tip : the edges, nearly vertical, in some
species are perfectly entire, in others obliquely and fftely dCnti-
eulated, in all bmarginated a t the extreme tip : the palate ^ a s f t
the middle a longitudinal sword-like process, perfeofcly straight,
Which towards the throat is more or lee» conspicuously doubled : ’
^the lower mandible has strong and Rattened sides,-more or less
impressed towards the base ; it is sharply acute, with the 'edges
drawn in, excessively sharp, quite straight either entire or slightly
..serrated- inferior ridge is slightly -'compressed,
rather acute, and more or less ascending ; the mental' angle is
Intended beyond the middle of . the 'mandible, is-exceedingly
narrow, very acute, and feathered : the bora-are naked, as. well as
a portion of the ôrfeits. :. The nostrils, not quite basal, are placed
in the furrow, an d are linear, longitudinal, pervious, and above
half closed by a naked membrane. The tongue is half the length
of the bill, aente, very entire, narrow,, membranous, and rathei*
flattehed. • T-he body is much- compressed.'- The foet are. equilibrate,
long and- four-toed: the tarsus isalways longer 'than the
sd, sometime* a great deal :,'in • s o « " ,
species the tibia isalmosS 'entirely naked,whilst in others itjis #n
the contrary nearly all Feathered: the toes, are elongated, slender,
narrowly borderedrby a niembr'anei all unequal; the mfddfo ik eon-
nectei to the outer one ;by. h. membrane that' egtend«' f©;.the end
of tke first.'] oint; %e |nwer;toe,, k li^le sihorter' tte h tite outer, is
ii^i'glyagistedwfehft"vCry minute- basal; membrane:- the hind ;
toe is long, half equal'to'the middfo one, and .all bearing eft the
ground, being’ inserted opposite- -to^the miner toeef dtie nails are
Cf]mpr»ss®d,. fktekte, the hind one largest: ^tho iaidAe one is
dilated .©n the inside into a pectinated: sharp edge. Tfcft coverings
; of the targi are transversely clypeate, the uppermnd .lekBtr.elyjtfS
being scutelliform, the ^isotflTSUS and kh#e are, e'oyeredwiih
gmall hexagonal-scales ; the tejes are scutellated. The®© yarious
forms of the scales are- represented, with. ftimitabfo .a*euracy .ky
Mn-Lawsoh in the plate of Beale’s Egret. The wings a re broad,
obtuse,, tuberculated,'the three outer’primaries-being longest, and
obtuse, ami composed'of ten or twelveJfikthers. fciThe feathers ,of
the .lower neck before in the adult bird are pendulous, elongated,
mostly acuminate, narrow* or ragged: on tht- Wac^mt and' hank
they are in many sj^efoscckftgafod,-: •
laciniate-lacerated, seldom dense; -oblong- orlrounded at the end ;
the neck is. har-e' a t base on the sides, but concealed by .a tuft of
longish plumes originating at the shoulders > • Ih©' afodbfokfhern^Sh
some species are short and* closely pressed to the body;, f t others
they are softek* • longer, especially an the sides, and woolly at
base-: the tail-feathers: are always.rounded at the end; those of
the lower parts, of the body are longish .with the webs disjoined,
and the barbs phimulose-. at base l the down is silky.-
The" feftales are like the males : the young are different from