H.J. Ruiz – Avian101

During my last vacation to Florida, I had the pleasure of seeing and added, a great opportunity to photograph an interesting bird…The Yellow-crowned Night Heron,  this timid bird with a peculiar quiet attitude and a plumage that blends perfectly with the surrounding vegetation, is a great subject for any photographer as many wader birds are. How about if I give you a more detailed information about this bird and you get acquainted.

The Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea), also called the American Night Heron or squawk, is a fairly small heron. It is found throughout a large part of the Americas, especially (but not exclusively) in warmer coastal regions; an example occurrence is the Petenes mangroves of the Yucatan.

A related heron, the Bermuda Night Heron, was endemic to Bermuda, but became extinct following human colonization.

Adults are about  24 in. long and weigh 22 oz. They have a white crown and back with the remainder of the body grayish, red eyes and short yellow legs. They have a white stripe below the eye. Juveniles resemble young Black-crowned Night-Herons, being mainly brown flecked with white or gray.

These birds stalk their prey or wait in ambush at the water’s edge, mainly at night. They mainly eat crustaceans, mollusks, frogs, aquatic insects, and small fish.

Text excerpts © Wikipedia – Photographs © HJ Ruiz – Avian101