Black-crowned Night Heron

blackcrownedheronbg: Black Crowned HeronCOMMON NAME: Black-crowned Night Heron

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Nycticorax nycticorax

DESCRIPTION:

Heavy body, short thick neck, short legs and heavy bill; adults: head with black cap, short crest, 2-3 narrow white plumes at back of head;eyes scarlet; underparts white; wings and tail gray; legs and feet usaully yellow. Roosts in trees close to feeding places in marshes; call is a loud, guttural quark as it flies, most often heard at dusk or after dark. Largely nocturnal, common around marshes, 45 inch wingspan and flight speed of 20-35 miles per hour.

LIFE HISTORY:

Life Span: Captive 10-17 years; wild 5-10 years (avg. 3 years)

Mating Season: March to May

Incubation Period: 24-26 days; fledgling phase 42-49

Clutch Size: 3-5 pale blue-green eggs

Nesting: Nest of coarse twigs, reeds, shrub, or tree up to 160 feet high.

ECOLOGY:

Niche: Experts at fishing; stands motionless in shallow water, then with a quick thrust of bill into water catches small fishes, thier main food. Good swimmers; know to eat algae and other plants, but mostly eats shad, herring, suckers minnows, toads, crayfish, mice, dragonflies; very adaptable.

Habitat: Diverse-freshwater streams, lakes, rice fields, dry grasslands, salt marshes.

ADOPT THIS ANIMAL

The Audubon Society Encyclopedia of North American Birds by John K Terres. ISBN# 0-517-03288-0.
National Geographic Society Field Guide to the Birds of North America, second edition. ISBN# 0-87044-692-4.
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