Black-crowned Night Heron [Nycticorax nycticorax]
Description
The Black-crowned Night Heron is a medium-sized heron found throughout a large part of the world, except in the coldest regions and Australasia. They usually nest in colonies, on platforms of sticks in a group of trees, or on the ground in protected locations such as islands or reedbeds. They stand at the water's edge, and wait to ambush prey, mainly at night. They primarily eat small fish, crustaceans, frogs, aquatic insects, small mammals, and small birds.
Taxonomy
| Phylum |
Chordates
Chordata
|
|---|---|
| Class |
Birds
Aves
|
| Order |
Pelicans and Relatives
Pelecaniformes
|
| Family |
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns
Ardeidae
|
| Genus |
Night Herons
Nycticorax
|