wild bird for its own sake was thought of.



Indeed, it may be taken for granted that
in spite of the persecution it received at the
hands of the falconer, the heron once en-
joyed a safer existence than it does to-day.
The law which now gives it partial protection
is not, one fears, nearly so effective as those
dire penalties which in ancient days were
visited upon those who dared disturb or
slay a bird of such distinguished patronage.
If only because of this once proud posi-
tion and his long association with the history
of these islands, the heron deserves a better
fate than to be shot at sight or worse still
to be meanly trapped, as he so often is in
these degenerate times. Apart from this,
he is also a bird of such interest that he still
deserves to be regarded with respect. The
crime urged against him, of course, is that
he is a fish-eater, which fact causes him to
be included in the list of " vermin " from
the angler's point of view. All are not so



375



THE PAGEANT OF NATURE



hard on him as this, however, for many
anglers recognize that the heron does not
live by fish alone, while others would not
grudge him a share in the sport that he
probably enjoys as much as they themselves.







Photo: Seton Gordon, F.Z.S.

Herons ape early nesting birds, and though not, properly

speaking, of gregarious habit, they are to be found in

companies of considerable size at the nesting season.

It is the water-keeper who seldom has a
good word to say for the heron, and finds in
him, perhaps, a useful scapegoat when his
master's fish are not so plentiful as they
might be. If there be one or two herons
about, they will certainly get the blame when
things go wrong, for they cannot be con-
sidered desirable visitors to water where game
fish are strictly preserved. In such cases,



unless some means are taken to keep them
at bay, they may at times do harm tf other
opportunities of obtaining food are few.
But in any district where so-called " coarse "
fish are plentiful, the birds are not likely to
do much harm to trout,
HHHHHH an d since most British
waters are overstocked with
the commoner fish, the
heron is surely welcome
to as many of these as he
likes. It must also be
borne in mind that the
weakest fish, including those
actually diseased, fall the
readiest prey to the heron.
These are better out of the
way from every point of
view, so that in that
direction, at least, he can
prove an ally of the angler
in the latter's attempt to
improve his waters and his
sport.

Apart from a diet of fish
proper, herons subsist very
largely on the miscellaneous
fare that abounds in marshy
places. Frogs, newts, water-
voles, beetles, fresh- water
snails and mussels, together
with a variety of water-
loving insects and their
larvas all these are accept-
able food ; while wherever
a sewage farm exists, the
herons will spend much of
their time in collecting tit-
bits from the accumulated
garbage, in which also are
to be found a multitude of
maggots and such small fry
of the locality.

Though not, properly
speaking, of the gregarious
order, herons are to be found
in companies of considerable size during the
nesting season, and on the approach of spring
they begin to congregate in their accustomed
quarters. There is no prettier sight in
these islands than the heronry at this time.
Herons are early-nesting birds, and tradi-
tion has it that they return to their nesting
haunts each season with the coming of the
February moon. As with rooks, a good deal



376




EXPECTATION

A Heron in its fishing ground
Photograph by Alfred Taylor



/




A THICKLY POPULATED HERONRY

The Heron prefers to nest in the topmost branches of the tallest available trees

Photograph by P. Webster




HERON NESTLINGS A WEEK OLD




A YOUNG HERON

The rapid growth of the nestlings is doubtless due to the fact that they are fed practically

day and night

Photographs by Alfred Taylor




YOUNG HERONS INDUCING THE PARENT BIRD TO DISGORGE FOOD

Photograph by Captain C. W, R. Knight



i







THE HERON.

In the days of falconry the Heron enjoyed protection as a sporting bird, but he is no
longer a favourite quarry. Indeed, as a fish-eater he is regarded as " vermin " from

the angler's point of view.



THE PAGEANT OF NATURE



depends upon the state of the weather at
this period, but if it be mild it is quite
certain that some time during the second
month of the year signs of activity will be
notkeable among the herons' nesting- trees,
and not long after the whole colony is in
active being. The first few days are spent,



ants for some particular position. In this
way a good deal of time is wasted, but
presently every point will be settled and
building and repairing embarked upon
without further delay.

In a very short time some nests will be
in order and the eggs laid, but in others the




Photo: Alfred Taylor.

Young Herons, a week old, squabbling in the nest, probably over a question of food
supplies. The time never seems to come when every hungry mouth in the heronry

is satisfied.



apparently, in inspecting the remains of last
year's domiciles, the condition of which will
depend upon the amount of damage wrought
by the winter's storms. Some may be past
repair and will be abandoned as useless ;
others will be considered worthy of renova-
tion ; and these matters, together with the
problem of selecting new sites for the addi-
tional nests that may be required, will lead
to much discussion and possibly no small
amount of squabbling between rival claim-



progress is comparatively slow, so that when
in the early days of April the voices of the
first newly-hatched broods are heard, there
may still be nests in which incubation has
hardly begun. In a heronry of considerable
size the nesting season is likely to be spread
over a long period, and summer may be well
advanced before every nursery is emptied
of its noisy brood.

In a normal year, however, there will be
enough young birds out of the nest before



378



WONDERS OF BIRD LIFE



death. The time never seems to come when
every hungry mouth in the heronry is
satisfied, for no sooner is one brood silenced
by a hearty meal than another begins to



the leaf is fully out for anyone to obtain a journey a cropful of food to disgorge at

fair view of the colony. Naturally enough, the nest that the parents are not worked to

the herons are apt to resent intrusion at

this season, but if due precautions are taken,

and the observer approaches cautiously,

remaining perfectly still when once in

position, they will soon

recover confidence and

carry on their usual

occupation. A pair of

glasses is indispensable,

for the herons prefer to

build in the topmost

branches, if not always in

the tallest trees. It is

only when no tall trees

are available, and water

or some other effective

barrier renders them

reasonably safe, that they

will build close to the

ground.

In most cases herons,
like rooks , select for their
nests trees which are not
easily climbed, and add
to their security by build-
ing on slender branches
quite incapable of bearing
the weight of a human
intruder. They may, how-
ever, have another reason
for this expedient. The
supple bough that sways
with the wind is safer
than one which, offering
resistance to the gale,




may be snapped off at a

critical period. Doubtless

the birds realize this,

though sometimes,

through careless construc-
tion or ill-chosen position,

a nest may be blown

bodily from its moorings in an exceptionally shout for more. During those brief periods

of time when one pair or another of the old
birds is permitted to rest, they make a fine



Photo: Alfred Taylo .

A young Heron, or " Brancher," in his first feathers will

perch in a contemplative attitude a little way from the

nest, as though enjoying the breeze which ruffles his coat.



strong wind.

The comings and goings of the old birds
are as interesting to watch as the young ones picture, perching, sentry-like, on some top-



in the heronry itself. No parents work most bough, their tall, upright bodies

harder than they, and the amount of food swaying gracefully to and fro, and their

that their offspring consume must be pro- nuptial plumes shining resplendent in the

digious. The rapid growth of the young sunshine. Amid such surroundings, shown

heron is doubtless due to the fact that it is to advantage against a background of fresh

fed practically day and night, and it is only green leaves, the heron loses that dispro-

because they are able to carry on each portionate legginess that is so evident when

379



THE PAGEANT OF NATURE



he stands upon the bare ground, but which is
necessary, of course, to his mode of life. He
is more graceful when standing knee- deep
in the water, one leg
characteristically
drawn up against his
breast ; but never is
he seen to better
advantage than
when, still dressed
in his wedding gar-
ments, he stands
perched among the
foliage of early
summer in the
heronry.

Many of the
existing heronries in
this country may
be traced back to
mediaeval times,
and some of them,
doubtless, are much
older, though the
colony does not
always occupy its
original position.
For this it is easy
to trace the cause.
As the years go by
the trees in which
the herons may
have built for
centuries gradually
begin to show signs
of decay, and the
birds taking warn-
ing from the dying
branches, will move
off to safer quarters
near at hand. Such
migrations are
usually quite
gradual and may be
spread over many
years, but the felling
of trees near by the
heronry or the up-
rooting by gales of
any trees used for
nesting is apt to
cause a more or less sudden stampede. A
Sussex heronry of some two hundred nests,
said to have been very much larger in former
years, was thus suddenly broken up some




Photo: Dr. Francis Ward,

The Heron as a fisher naturally finds his

easiest prey in the weakest fish. In ridding

the water of such specimens he deserves, at

least, the respect of anglers.



years ago, much to the regret of the owner,
who had not realized that the birds
might take fright at the cutting of timber
which did not
actually form part
of the settlement.
In this case the
birds only went a
few hundred yards,
but their move took
them on to another
property and into
a different parish.

In the absence of
any special cause of
disturbance, herons
are very loath to
leave their ancestral
home, and in spite
of receiving no
special protection or
encouragement, will
cling to the same
spot for generations.
They will put up
with mild inter-
ference on occasion,
provided it be of a
temporary character
only. There is in
the south of
England, for
example, a very
ancient heronry in
which rooks also
nest, sometimes in
the same trees as
the herons, and
here every spring
the young rooks are
shot in accustomed
fashion. During the
shooting , the
herons, like the
rooks, display great
alarm, but as soon
as it is over settle
down again as if
nothing had
happened. As a rule
the heron does not
display the same confidence in man as
is the case with the rook. The latter
bird appears actually to enjoy the company
of mankind, if one may judge by its



380



WONDERS OF BIRD LIFE



preference for nesting close to human
habitations. Herons usually prefer more
secluded surroundings, though the exist-
ence of a rookery has at times tempted
them to set up house in some more public
place. Rooks and herons appear to frater-
nize well together, though cases of temporary
disagreement have been noted, and there
is at least one recorded instance of a battle
royal in which blood was shed.

A friend of the writer's, whose veracity
is beyond all question, once witnessed an
encounter between a heron and a peewit.
The latter, whose nest must have been hard
by, opened the attack on the much larger
and stronger bird. The battle, which took
place in the air and was fierce while it
lasted, was ended by a savage thrust from
the heron's beak stabbing the peewit so
severely in the breast that it fell lifeless to
the ground. Such an unlooked-for happen-
ing as this may have been due to mere chance,
for it is doubtful whether the heron in-
tended to do anything more than drive away
its tormenter. Herons are often " mobbed "
by other birds, not infrequently by rooks, in
which instances the latter may be taken to
be strangers. On these occasions, whether



it be harried by a single bird or by many,
the heron seems to endure persecution
without much resentment, its chief desire
being, apparently, to get away. It is by no
means a bird of pugnacious or interfering
instincts, and it is, therefore, all the more
difficult to understand why it should be
subjected to such frequent annoyance.
Perhaps it is just a form of teasing which
the weak are sometimes so fond of inflicting
on the strong especially when they think
it can be done with impunity. When
cornered, however, the heron defends
itself to some purpose with its beak. If
shot at and wounded, or caught in a trap, it
will attack anyone who comes within reach,
and at such times no dog that has any
respect for his person will approach it.

At the present day Great Britain can still
boast of some hundreds of heronries, most
of which, however, are only small settle-
ments consisting of anything -up to five-
and-twenty nests apiece. Ireland also has
a considerable number, but the tendency
to-day is for these colonies to decrease.
The birds wander so far afield after the
nesting season that they run many risks of
being destroyed.




Photo: Dr. Francis Ward, F.Z.S.



In this illustration the Heron, disturbed while fishing, is seen leaving the water. His
flight at such a time is always rapid.



Photo: Howard Renthant.

The Skylark has inspired more poets, perhaps, than any other British bird. It may

be seen amid tufts of grass, ling, or heath, and towards the end of the breeding

season its notes are frequently uttered from the ground.



19.-PLEASURE IN OUTDOOR NATURE:
STUDY OF BIRDS.*-Part II

By THE RIGHT HON. THE VISCOUNT GREY OF FALLODON, K.G.



A FURTHER aspect of birds, perhaps
the most attractive of all, is the
gift that some of them have of
song. If people wish to appreciate our
common birds they must learn their
songs. There is more pleasure to those
who know them in the songs of birds than
in almost any other aspect of bird life. It
takes some trouble to learn them, but it is
almost essential to pleasure in bird life to
have a reasonably good knowledge of them.
The best time to get this knowledge is
from the middle of April to the middle of
May, when all the birds are in full song,
when the summer birds are here or on the
way, and the leaves are not fully open on
the trees, so that you get the best view of the
birds. The songs of our common birds are
no doubt known to many of you , and I would
only say one or two things about them.

First of all, if you are fond of songs of
birds make a point of not letting any month
go by without hearing the robin and the
wren sing, because these two birds can
be heard throughout the year. If there
is a very cold and severe month you may
not be able to hear them, but in an aver-
age year you can hear them sing in every

* A lecture delivered to the Nature Study Union.
Reprinted by courtesy of the Union. (Hon. Sec.,
Henry E. Turner, i, Grosvenor Park, Camberwell,
S.E.)



month. The wren's song is remarkable
for its exceeding loudness compared with
the size of the bird. You will not have
much difficulty in getting close to it when
it is singing, and if you consider the small-
ness of its body, the loudness of its song,
the vehemence of it, and the animation of
the body well, really, I have sometimes
been afraid that the little body would burst
and be shattered by the vehemence of its
singing.

There are other birds that sing only for
a few months. The blackbird is one of our
best singers, but you' will not, as a rule,
hear it before February or after the month
of June. I have known of people hearing
blackbirds in January, but when I have
been able to investigate the matter, I have
found a missel-thrush to be the songster.
In the early part of the year the hearing of
the first blackbird's song is a thing specially
to look forward to, precisely because you
have not heard it for so long. This is an
instance where anticipation increases pleas-
ure. And then, as the season goes on, there
come the summer birds which have spent
the winter in North Africa or even farther
south. There is not only pleasure in hear-
ing their song for the first time each spring,
but there is something romantic in think-
ing of the immenseness of the journey they



382



WONDERS OF BIRD LIFE



may have accomplished since you heard
them the year before. A swallow, ringed
in Great Britain in the summer, has been
found as far south as Natal, thousands of
miles away ; yet, if all went well, that
swallow would have returned not only to
the country, but to the particular spot
w r here it had been reared.

And so with other birds. The anticipation
in the spring of the coming of these birds
from the places where they have spent the



from farther north or farther east to spend
the winter in Great Britain. One familiar
instance is the woodcock. Many wood-
cocks breed here, and presumably never
leave these islands. But the great majority
of the woodcocks we have in the autumn
and winter come from farther north or
farther east. They cross the North Sea
a formidable width for small birds to
cross. We are told by those w r ho have
studied these things that there was a time




Plioto L. J. LangfoTct.

In the nesting season the male Blackbird may be seen to advantage on guard over

his brood. One of the best of British songsters, he is not heard, as a rule, before

February or after the month of June.

when the North Sea was all land, and per-
haps that is the reason why some birds
undertake this tremendous journey across
it. If the species came that way when the
North Sea did not exist, I suppose they may
have kept up the habit when the North Sea
was gradually formed, though I am not
sure whether birds existed at the time when
there was no North Sea.

I was once lying on the sand-hills by the
shore in Northumberland on a fine, bright,
still day about the end of November. I was
lying on my back looking up at the sky and
I saw a woodcock arrive, evidently from a
great height, with great velocity behind its
descent. It slanted down over me at tre-
mendous speed. It descended with wings
not quite fully extended and rigid ; it seemed



winter is a thing to which one looks for-
ward with the greatest interest. You will
probably hear the first blackcap, the first
willow wren, and the first wood-warbler, and
so forth, each year in much the same place as
you heard it before. Thus, when one gets
fond of these birds and acquires the habit
of listening for them in the same place at
the same time every spring, the satisfaction
of having your anticipation realized, of
hearing the same song in the same place for
perhaps thirty years, and knowing that some
bird has come back to the same spot, is a
satisfaction which gives us peculiar pleasure.
It is not only of the birds which come to
us in the summer that I would say some-
thing. There is also the other migration to
look forward to, the birds which come to us



383



THE PAGEANT OF NATURE




Photo: . Hanley.

A notable winter visitor is the Woodcock. Although many of these
birds breed in the British Isles, and presumably never leave our
shores, the majority come from the North and East.

to come with precipitated and great speed
from very high up. I saw that it lit in the
rough grass about
seventy yards
behind me. I
know
tired



doubt many perish
on the way.

However, it is not
very surprising that
the woodcock
crosses the North
Sea , when the
smallest bird we
have, the golden-
crested wren,
crosses it in numbers
every autumn. The
golden- crested wren
is very common in
Great Britain
wherever there is
woodland, especially
fir trees. If you get
to know their song
you can realize how
common they are.
Many of them breed
in this country and
probably never leave
it. They are not
very shy; you can

get close to them, and the only difficulty
in watching them is that they are so very






to



wished
if it was
after its long
flight, so I went
to see how it was.
It rose several
yards in front of
me and flew
away over the
fields inland with
no sign of being
tired, and from
that I judged that
in the ordinary
way, with fine
weather, birds can
cross the North
Sea quite easily
without being ex-
hausted or tired.
When they meet
with bad weather
they arrive very
exhausted, and no




Ihotj: . Hanky.

The Jack-snipe, another migrant to British shores, indulges in a joy

flight. He flies in a wide circuit, making a short descent from time

to time in the air, and achieves with the vibration of his tail feathers

a noise like the bleating o.f a goat.

384




28



THE PAGEANT OF NATURE




The Widgeon sometimes breeds in Scotland, but the greater number go much farther
north, and return in flocks during autumn and winter.



restless. Now the next time you have
the opportunity of getting close to one,
just consider the fact that, though that par-
ticular bird may never have crossed the
North Sea, thousands and thousands of
golden-crested wrens, exactly like it, as small
and apparently as weak, do cross it every
year. One observer in Heligoland years
ago, in 1882, saw such a mass of golden-
crested wrens arriving over the sea that he
compared them to a snowstorm, every bird
representing a flake.

One more instance I would give you as
to migration to show how attractive it may
be and to show you also how much can be
done in taming birds. In 1921, in my
garden, there were reared two or three
broods of widgeon, which, as you know, is
a British duck. There are some that breed
in Scotland, but the bulk of them go much
farther north to breed and come to us in
flocks in autumn and winter. Three of
these birds reared in the garden grew so
tame that they would take food out of my
hand, not snatching it, but continuing to
feed with the bill in the palm of my hand
with complete confidence, though in a wild
state they are very shy birds. In the spring



of 1922 they went away two drakes and one
duck. Presumably they joined flocks of wild
widgeon going north. They may not have
gone far, or they may have gone far north ;
anyhow, they were away for about seven
months. In November of that year the
female bird returned, and came up to me
and began feeding in exactly the same way
out of my hand as she had done before she
went away. About three weeks afterwards
one of the male birds came back and did
exactly the same. It is exceedingly attrac-
tive if you can make birds so tame that
although they may be away amongst wild
birds six or seven months, they yet come
back to the same place, and are as tame as
they were before.

Birds have, to a greater degree, I think, than
any other animate creature, except man, the
power to express joy. I will give one or two
instances. The flight and song of the lark
are familiar to you ; it is a real and evident
joy flight. The note of the curlew in spring
is a long vibrating whistle, which is full of
joy and very wonderful in expression ; this
is uttered mainly in the air, but sometimes
partly on the ground. The snipe, too, has
a joy flight ; he flies in a wide circuit, and



386



WONDERS OF BIRD LIFE



making a short descent from time to time in
the air, achieves with the vibration of his tail
feathers a noise like the bleating of a goat,
which apparently gives him great satisfac-
tion. He will fly round and round for some
time continually making that noise, and you
cannot watch it without seeing that the
flight is an expression of joy.

You have also the family life of birds to
consider. Nearly all our British birds are
monogamous. There are some exceptions.
The blackcock black game which are in-
digenous British birds, are polygamous.
I do not count the pheasant, because the
pheasant is not an indigenous bird. He
was imported from the East and brought his
Eastern customs with him. But most of our
birds the vast majority are monogamous,
and the larger birds, perhaps the smaller
ones too, pair for life. I warned you before
that when you studied the habits of birds you
always found the cuckoo at the discreditable