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Black-crowned Night Heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
{Species Archive Index}
Juvenile |
Adult |
| Photos© by Ginger Allen, University of Florida. |
Body - white underparts, black crown & back, gray wings Juvenille- gray-brown lightly spotted
Bill Description - short, black, sharp
Juvenille- two-toned bill (Yellow crowned solid)
Leg Color- breeding pink otherwise yellow-green
Juvenile-gray
Other Characteristics - white breeding plumes, red eye
Status- throughout Florida
Reproduction - 2 to 5 pale blue eggs, laid in bulky nests
-often nest in multi-species heron colonies
Distribution - breeds throughout United States
-some migrate, winter mostly in southern United States
Habitat - freshwater swamps, tidal marshes,
shrub-bordered lakes, stream margins
Diet - fish, amphibians, crustaceans, snakes, insects,
small birds, mammals
Call - deep-pitched quawk
Fun facts - nocturnal, roosts during the day
-may eat nestlings of other heron species
-usually solitary, strongly defends feeding territory
-grasps prey with its bill (instead of stabbing)
-snaps bill rapidly in shallow water to lure prey
{Species Archive Index} |
