Heron Behavior Terminology
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Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron Nyctanassa Violacea
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron Nyctanassa violacea Bob Moul Photo CURRENT STATUS: In Pennsylvania, the yellow-crowned night-heron is listed as state endangered and protected under the Game and Wildlife Code. Nationally, they are not listed as an endangered or threat- ened species. All migratory birds are protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. POPULATION TREND: Yellow-crowned night-herons (Nyctanassa violacea) are one of the state’s rarest nesting birds). They are rare, regular visitors or residents in the Piedmont region of southeastern Penn- sylvania (all or parts of Bucks, Northampton, Lehigh, Berks, Lebanon, Lancaster, Dauphin, York, Adams and Cumberland counties), where they breed locally. In the coastal plain area along the Delaware River near Philadelphia, they are rare, irregular visitors. They are accidental visitors elsewhere in the state, particularly in late summer following the breeding season. Currently, the only known breeding sites are in Cumberland, Dauphin and York counties. They nest singly and in loose colonies regularly along Conodo- quinet Creek. A few yellow-crowned night-herons also nest on private property in an urban setting in Dauphin County and at Kiwanis Lake in York. Nests were once also found along Conestoga and Little Conestoga creeks in Lancaster County. Surveys in the 1990s counted not more than eight to 12 nests in any year in the state. Yellow-crowned night-herons were first listed as threat- ened species in 1990 because of their limited popula- tion and restricted range. They were downgraded to endangered in 1999 because of their small and vulner- able population. IDENTIFYING CHARACTERISTICS: Adults are me- dium-sized, 22 to 28 inches in length from bill tip to tail tip, gray with a black head and whitish cheek patch and crown. -
Ardea Cinerea (Grey Heron) Family: Ardeidae (Herons and Egrets) Order: Ciconiiformes (Storks, Herons and Ibises) Class: Aves (Birds)
UWU The Online Guide to the Animals of Trinidad and Tobago Behaviour Ardea cinerea (Grey Heron) Family: Ardeidae (Herons and Egrets) Order: Ciconiiformes (Storks, Herons and Ibises) Class: Aves (Birds) Fig. 1. Grey heron, Ardea cinerea. [http://www.google.tt/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bbc.co.uk/lancashire/content/images/2006/06/15/grey_heron, downloaded 14 November 2012] TRAITS. Grey herons are large birds that can be 90-100cm tall and an adult could weigh in at approximately 1.5 kg. They are identified by their long necks and very powerful dagger like bills (Briffett 1992). They have grey plumage with long black head plumes and their neck is white with black stripes on the front. In adults the forehead sides of the head and the centre of the crown are white. In flight the neck is folded back with the wings bowed and the flight feathers are black. Each gender looks alike except for the fact that females have shorter heads (Seng and Gardner 1997). The juvenile is greyer without black markings on the head and breast. They usually live long with a life span of 15-24 years. ECOLOGY. The grey heron is found in Europe, Asia and Africa, and has been recorded as an accidental visitor in Trinidad. Grey herons occur in many different habitat types including savannas, ponds, rivers, streams, lakes and temporary pools, coastal brackish water, wetlands, marsh and swamps. Their distribution may depend on the availability of shallow water (brackish, saline, fresh, flowing and standing) (Briffett 1992). They prefer areas with tall trees for nesting UWU The Online Guide to the Animals of Trinidad and Tobago Behaviour (arboreal rooster and nester) but if trees are unavailable, grey herons may roost in dense brush or undergrowth. -
The Grey Heron
Bird Life The Grey Heron t is quite likely that if someone points out a grey heron to you, I you will remember it the next time you see it. The grey heron is a tall bird, usually about 80cm to 1m in height and is common to inland waterways and coasts. Though the grey heron has a loud “fraank” call, it can most often be seen standing silently in shallow water with its long neck outstretched, watching the water for any sign of movement. The grey heron is usually found on its own, although some may feed close together. Their main food is fish, but they will take small mammals, insects, frogs and even young birds. Because of their habit of occasionally taking young birds, herons are not always popular and are often driven away from a feeding area by intensive mobbing. Mobbing is when smaller birds fly aggressively at their predator, in this case the heron, in order to defend their nests or their lives. Like all herons, grey herons breed in a colony called a heronry. They mostly nest in tall trees and bushes, but sometimes they nest on the ground or on ledge of rock by the sea. Nesting starts in February,when the birds perform elaborate displays and make noisy callings. They lay between 3-5 greenish-blue eggs, often stained white by the birds’ droppings. Once hatched, the young © Illustration: Audrey Murphy make continuous squawking noises as they wait to be fed by their parents. And though it doesn’t sound too pleasant, the parent Latin Name: Ardea cinerea swallows the food and brings it up again at the nest, where the Irish Name: Corr réisc young put their bills right inside their parents mouth in order to Colour: Grey back, white head and retrieve it! neck, with a black crest on head. -
OBSERVATIONS on a GREAT EGRET Ardea Alba and NANKEEN NIGHT HERON Nycticorax Caledonicus COLONY at the PERTH ZOO, WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Corella, 2004, 28(3): 82-86 OBSERVATIONS ON A GREAT EGRET Ardea alba AND NANKEEN NIGHT HERON Nycticorax caledonicus COLONY AT THE PERTH ZOO, WESTERN AUSTRALIA ROBYN L. PHILLIMORE' and HARRY F. RECHER2 'School of Natural Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, Western Australia, Australia 6027 email: [email protected]: [email protected] 'Corresponding author. Present address: P.O. Box 154, Brooklyn, New South Wales, Australia 2083 Received: I I Augusr 2003 A colony of Great Egrets Ardea alba and Nankeen Night Herons Nycticorax caledonicus has existed at the Perth Zoo, Western Australia for over 25 years. The colony of egrets is one of very few in the region and hence is significant for the conservation and management of Great Egrets in Western Australia. From 1996 to 1998, surveys were conducted to determine the number of breeding pairs, clutch size, breeding success, and nest site selection of birds in the colony. Most observations were ground based, but a 30-metre cherry picker was used to inspect nests and determine clutch size. One hundred and thirty night heron and 49 egret nests were found in 1996; 92 night heron and 41 egret nests in 1997; and, 153 night heron and 36 egret nests in 1998. Nesting commenced in September, with peak numbers in early November. Both species nested in tall trees well above zoo visitors and animals. Egrets nested only in pines, whereas night herons nested mainly in figs. Great Egrets had an average clutch size of 2.6-2.7 by early November compared with a clutch of 1.6-1.8 for Nankeen Night Herons. -
Wetland Birds in the Recent Fossil Record of Britain and Northwest Europe John R
Wetland birds in the recent fossil record of Britain and northwest Europe John R. Stewart 18. Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus, Deep Bay, Mai Po, Hong Kong, February 1995. Geological evidence suggests that Dalmatian Pelicans bred in Britain, and in other western European countries (including The Netherlands and Denmark), prior to and during the Iron Age. Ray Tipper. ABSTRACT Wetland habitats in Britain and other parts of western Europe have been severely depleted during the latter part of the Holocene owing principally to drainage and land reclamation. Changes in the distribution of a number of wetland bird species can be gauged from archaeological and geological site records of larger birds, whose remains are generally better preserved. Key species are discussed here, including a heron Nycticorax fenensis and a crane Grus primigenia, two extinct species named on possibly uncertain fossil evidence. We can let our minds wander back to the misty realms of fifteen hundred years ago, to a wonderful Britain which was alive with bird song from coast to coast, which sheltered wolves, bears and boars in its dark woodlands, cranes in its marshes, bustards on its heaths and beavers by its streams, and we can visualize the great pink pelican sweeping on its huge pinions over the reedy waterways which then penetrated by secret paths into the very heart of what is now Somerset. (Whitlock, 1953) © British Birds 97 • January 2004 • 33-43 33 Wetland birds in the recent fossil record f all the major habitats in northwest species, including Mute Swan Cygnus olor and Europe, wetlands may have been the Common Crane, may have become physically Omost severely depleted during the smaller owing to habitat impoverishment. -
Breeding Birds of the Texas Coast
Roseate Spoonbill • L 32”• Uncom- Why Birds are Important of the mon, declining • Unmistakable pale Breeding Birds Texas Coast pink wading bird with a long bill end- • Bird abundance is an important indicator of the ing in flat “spoon”• Nests on islands health of coastal ecosystems in vegetation • Wades slowly through American White Pelican • L 62” Reddish Egret • L 30”• Threatened in water, sweeping touch-sensitive bill •Common, increasing • Large, white • Revenue generated by hunting, photography, and Texas, decreasing • Dark morph has slate- side to side in search of prey birdwatching helps support the coastal economy in bird with black flight feathers and gray body with reddish breast, neck, and Chuck Tague bright yellow bill and pouch • Nests Texas head; white morph completely white – both in groups on islands with sparse have pink bill with Black-bellied Whistling-Duck vegetation • Preys on small fish in black tip; shaggy- • L 21”• Lo- groups looking plumage cally common, increasing • Goose-like duck Threats to Island-Nesting Bay Birds Chuck Tague with long neck and pink legs, pinkish-red bill, Greg Lavaty • Nests in mixed- species colonies in low vegetation or on black belly, and white eye-ring • Nests in tree • Habitat loss from erosion and wetland degradation cavities • Occasionally nests in mesquite and Brown Pelican • L 51”• Endangered in ground • Uses quick, erratic movements to • Predators such as raccoons, feral hogs, and stir up prey Chuck Tague other woody vegetation on bay islands Texas, but common and increasing • Large -
Black-Crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax Nycticorax) William C
Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) William C. Scharf Status: Special Concern (MNFI) Detroit Zoo, MI. 6/11/2008 © Joan Tisdale (Click to view a comparison of Atlas I to II) Known by the elegant black and white of its Distribution Black-crowned Night-Herons in Michigan adult plumage and its red-eyed stare, the Black- historically have had their colonies along the crowned Night-Heron is a voracious and shores and islands of Lake Erie, the Detroit stealthy predator of fish, frogs, mice, and River, Lake St. Clair and Lake Huron with new especially young gulls, terns and other birds. colonies since Scharf (1998) expanding into Many potential prey animals should heed its northern Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, the St. “quawk” call in the night. A widespread species, Marys River and eastern Lake Superior. They it is found nesting on every continent except seek nesting on islands or other similar insulated Australia and Antarctica (Davis 1993). They are spots protected from predators. Twelve breeding colonial breeders, and are often found breeding colonies were documented on the Great Lakes and foraging with other species of herons as islands or along the shoreline of the NLP and well as other species of colonial nesting UP during MBBA II. This seems to indicate an waterbirds. increase in northward nesting for this species. A noteworthy coincident change has been that new Suitable wetland habitat for nesting and colonies established in Ontario are northward of foraging influences Black-crowned Night Heron the traditional nesting areas by 72 km (48 mi) distribution. Sites of Black-crowned Night (Cadman 2007). -
Courtship and Pair Formation in the Great Egret
COURTSHIP AND PAIR FORMATION IN THE GREAT EGRET Joca• H. Wt•s• THv. reproductivebehavior of the Ardeidaehas receivedconsiderable attention (Verwey 1930; Meanley 1955; Cottrille and Cottrille 1958; Meyerriecks1960 and in Palmer 1962; Baerendsand Van Der Cingel 1962; Blaker 1969a, 1969b; Lancaster 1970). Although Meyerriecks (in Palmer 1962) summarizedthe behavior and McCrimmon (1974) described two sexual displays in detail, the reproductive behavior of the Great Egret (Casmerodiusalbus egretta) remainsessentially unknown. This paper describescourtship and pair formationin this little studied species. STLTD¾AREAS AND METIIODS Most of the observations were made at Avery Island, Iberia Parish, Louisiana, 91ø 30' W, 29ø 30• N. Great Egrets nested on five bamboo platforms (ranging from 4 by 20 m to 7 by 35 m, approximate]y) 2 m above the water surface in "Bird City," a 5-ha freshwater pond in the center of the island. Short lengths of bamboo twigs were provided for nest material. The five bamboo platforms supported 430 •-• 15 nesting pairs of Great Egrets in 1974. This number represented a drastic decline from previous years (E. M. Simmons, pets. comm.) and coincidedwith the establishmentof a second heronry 1 km southeast of Bird City. Additional observationswere made at Headquarter Pond, St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, and Smith Island, Wakulla County, Florida, 84ø 10' W, and 84ø 19• W, 30ø 05' N, and 30ø 03' N, respectively. At Headquarter Pond Great Egrets nested in willows growing in open water more than 0.6 m in depth. The number of nesting egretsdecreased from 38 pairs in 1971 to 9 pairs in 1972 (see below). -
Effects of Nest Characteristics and Black Rat Rattus Rattus Predation on Daily Survival Rates of Great Egret Ardea Alba Nest
Effects of nest characteristics and black rat Rattus rattus predation on daily survival rates of great egret Ardea alba nests in mangrove forest in the Hara Biosphere Reserve, the Persian Gulf Authors: Elnaz Neinavaz, Ahmad Barati, Jessi L. Brown, Farzaneh Etezadifar, and Besat Emami Source: Wildlife Biology, 19(3) : 240-247 Published By: Nordic Board for Wildlife Research URL: https://doi.org/10.2981/12-087 BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses. Your use of this PDF, the BioOne Complete website, and all posted and associated content indicates your acceptance of BioOne’s Terms of Use, available at www.bioone.org/terms-of-use. Usage of BioOne Complete content is strictly limited to personal, educational, and non-commercial use. Commercial inquiries or rights and permissions requests should be directed to the individual publisher as copyright holder. BioOne sees sustainable scholarly publishing as an inherently collaborative enterprise connecting authors, nonprofit publishers, academic institutions, research libraries, and research funders in the common goal of maximizing access to critical research. Downloaded From: https://bioone.org/journals/Wildlife-Biology on 04 Apr 2019 Terms of Use: https://bioone.org/terms-of-use Wildl. Biol. 19: 240-247 (2013) Original article DOI: 10.2981/12-087 Ó Wildlife Biology, NKV www.wildlifebiology.com Effects of nest characteristics and black rat Rattus rattus predation on daily survival rates of great egret Ardea alba nests in mangrove forest in the Hara Biosphere Reserve, the Persian Gulf Elnaz Neinavaz, Ahmad Barati, Jessi L. -
Great Egret Ardea Alba
Great Egret Ardea alba Joe Kosack/PGC Photo CURRENT STATUS: In Pennsylvania, the great egret is listed state endangered and protected under the Game and Wildlife Code. Nationally, they are not listed as an endangered/threatened species. All migra- tory birds are protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. POPULATION TREND: The Pennsylvania Game Commission counts active great egret (Ardea alba) nests in every known colony in the state every year to track changes in population size. Since 2009, only two nesting locations have been active in Pennsylvania: Kiwanis Lake, York County (fewer than 10 pairs) and the Susquehanna River’s Wade Island, Dauphin County (fewer than 200 pairs). Both sites are Penn- sylvania Audubon Important Bird Areas. Great egrets abandoned other colonies along the lower Susque- hanna River in Lancaster County in 1988 and along the Delaware River in Philadelphia County in 1991. Wade Island has been surveyed annually since 1985. The egret population there has slowly increased since 1985, with a high count of 197 nests in 2009. The 10-year average count from 2005 to 2014 was 159 nests. First listed as a state threatened species in 1990, the great egret was downgraded to endan- gered in 1999. IDENTIFYING CHARACTERISTICS: Great egrets are almost the size of a great blue heron (Ardea herodias), but white rather than gray-blue. From bill to tail tip, adults are about 40 inches long. The wingspan is 55 inches. The plumage is white, bill yellowish, and legs and feet black. Commonly confused species include cattle egret (Bubulus ibis), snowy egret (Egretta thula), and juvenile little blue herons (Egretta caerulea); however these species are smaller and do not nest regularly in the state. -
Snowy Egret Egretta Thula One of California's Most Elegant Birds, The
Herons and Bitterns — Family Ardeidae 133 Snowy Egret Egretta thula One of California’s most elegant birds, the Snowy Egret frequents both coastal and inland wetlands. Since the 1930s, when it recovered from persecution for its plumes, it has been common in fall and winter. Since 1979, it has also established an increasing num- ber of breeding colonies. Yet, in contrast to the Great Egret, the increase in Snowy Egret colonies has not been accompanied by a clear increase in the Snowy’s numbers. Though dependent on wetlands for forag- ing, the Snowy Egret takes advantage of humanity, from nesting in landscaping to following on the heels of clam diggers at the San Diego River mouth, snap- ping up any organisms they suck out of the mud. Breeding distribution: The first recorded Snowy Egret colonies in San Diego County were established at Buena Vista Lagoon in 1979 (J. P. Rieger, AB 33:896, 1979) and Photo by Anthony Mercieca in the Tijuana River valley in 1980 (AB 34:929, 1980). By 1997 these were no longer active, but during the atlas Two of the largest colonies lie near San Diego and period we confirmed nesting at eight other sites. Because Mission bays. The colony on the grounds of Sea World, Snowy Egrets often hide their nests in denser vegetation behind the Forbidden Reef exhibit (R8), was founded than do the Great Egret and Great Blue Heron, assessing in 1991 and contained 42 nests and fledged 44 young in the size of a Snowy Egret colony is more difficult than for 1997 (Black et al. -
MADAGASCAR: the Wonders of the “8Th Continent” a Tropical Birding Set Departure
MADAGASCAR: The Wonders of the “8th Continent” A Tropical Birding Set Departure November 3—28, 2013 Guide: Ken Behrens All photos taken during this trip. All photos by Ken Behrens unless noted otherwise. TOUR SUMMARY Madagascar has long been a core destination for Tropical Birding, and with last year’s opening of a satellite office in the country, we have further solidified our expertise in the “Eighth Continent.” This was another highly successful set-departure tour to this special island. It included both the Northwestern Endemics Pre-Trip at the start and the Helmet Vanga extension to the Masoala Peninsula at the end. Although Madagascar poses some logistical challenges, especially in the form of the national airline Air Madagascar, we had no problems on this tour, not even a single delayed flight! The birding was great, with 196 species recorded, including almost all of the island’s endemic birds. As usual, the highlight was seeing all five of the incredible ground-rollers, from the roadrunner-like Long-tailed of the spiny forest to the wonderful rainforest-dwelling Scaly. There was a strong cast of vangas, including Helmet, Bernier’s, and Sickle-billed. In fact, we saw every member of the family save the mysterious Red-tailed Newtonia which is only regularly seen in the far south. As normal, the couas were also a favorite. From the shy and beautiful Red-breasted of Madagascar Set Departure Tour Nov. 3-28, 2013 the eastern rainforest to the huge Giant Coua of the dry western forest, we were looking for and at couas virtually every day! The bizarre mesites form a Malagasy endemic family, and we had superb extended views of all three members of the family.