Green Heron – Foraging Butorides virescens July – Texas L=18” ...... WS=26” ...... WT=7 oz Order: Ciconiiformes (Herons, Ibises, Storks, New World Vultures, Allies) Family: Ardeidae (Herons, Egrets, Bitterns) Young Green Herons are dependent on their parents for an estimated 30 days. During this time they stay near the nest hopping or flying from branch to branch and practicing foraging.
Black-crowned Night-Heron – Inner city Houston,Texas Nycticox nycticox June – Texas L=25”...... WS=44”...... WT=1.9 lb Order: Ciconiiformes (Herons, Ibises, Storks, New World Vultures, Allies) Family: Ardeidae (Herons, Egrets, Bitterns) Black-crowned Night-Herons feed on a variety of aquatic organisms, especially fish. They prefer shallow vegetated creeks, ponds, marshes and wetlands and, as their name implies, they prefer to feed at night. However, they do extend their feeding period into daylight hours when raising their young which occurs simultaneously with short days in North America. The bird pictured here was feeding during mid-morning and was found far from its normal habitat.
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron – restingNyctanassa violacea July – Texas L=24” ...... WS=42” ....... WT=1.5 lb Order: Ciconiiformes (Herons, Ibises, Storks, New World Vultures, Allies) Family: Ardeidae (Herons, Egrets, Bitterns) This species most often inhabits forested wetlands, swamps, and bayous of the deep south where poor lighting seems to be the most reliable characteristic of its breeding sites. Because Yellow-crowned Night-Herons are dark bodied and nest under canopy in forested areas, aerial surveys are ineffective in determining population status and because colonies are small and scattered, ground surveys are economically unfeasible. Yellow-crowned Night-Herons are frequently not listed at all in results of broad surveys for wading birds. Numerous species of birds sun and adopt quite varied positions in doing so. There is little experimental data to establish the function of sunning but some suggested purposes include keeping the feathers supple through limited heating, harming or repositioning parasites, saving energy by taking up solar heat and simply doing it because it feels good. A number of large water birds stand for many minutes with their wings extended in a pose known as “spead-wing posture”. This type of sunning is most certainly done to help dry the feathers and to increase body heat.
