lf States.

It is somewhat larger than the last species, the head and neck are
rufous, the body is bluish gray, and the back is adorned with slender
gray plumes. It also has a white phase. This Egret is very abundant
along the whole Gulf coast, but especially so in Texas. Their nesting
habits are identical with those of the other small Herons and Egrets.
The three or four eggs are rather of a more greenish blue than the
preceding. Size 1.90 x 1.45. Data.--Gainesville, Florida, April 14,
1894. Three eggs. Nest of sticks and straw in a button-wood tree, two
feet above the water. Collector, George Graham.

199. LOUISIANA HERON. _Hydranassa tricolor ruficollis._

Range.--Sub-tropical America, north regularly to the Gulf States and
casually farther.

This Heron is of about the size of the Reddish Egret, but the neck is
longer, more slender and dark, while the chin, throat and underparts are
white. The plumes from the back are short, reaching barely to the end of
the tail. They nest in large colonies in company with Egrets and Little
Blue Herons, placing their nests in the mangroves, only a few feet above
the water. Their nests are the same as those of the other species, a
slight platform of sticks, and the three to five eggs are practically
not distinguishable from those of the Snowy or Little Blue Herons. Size
1.75 x 1.35.

[Illustration 125: Pale bluish green.]
[Illustration: Reddish Egret. Louisiana Heron.]
[Illustration: Pale bluish green.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]

Page 124

200. LITTLE BLUE HERON. _Florida caerulea._

Range.--South Atlantic and Gulf coasts, north casually to New England
and Manitoba; west to Kansas and Nebraska.

A smaller species than the preceding, length 22 inches, plumage a
uniform slaty blue changing to purplish red on the head and neck. They
also have a white phase, but always show traces of the slaty blue,
especially on the primaries. Young birds are always white. They breed in
immense rookeries during April and May. Their nesting habits and eggs
are very similar to the last species, although the eggs average a trifle
smaller. Size 1.75 x 1.25. Data.--Avery's Island, Louisiana, April 21,
1896. 5 eggs. Nest a flat and frail platform of twigs in a Mimosa tree
growing in floating turf, over deep water in a large swamp. Collector,
E. A. McIlhenny.

201. GREEN HERON. _Butorides virescens virescens._

Range.--Temperate and sub-tropical America, breeding north to the
Briti