Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax), 9 June 2013
Black-crowned Night-Herons can be seen roosting in shrubs or trees along the edges of Bodega Harbor, and if you're lucky you may catch a glimpse of one feeding in shallow water at the northern end of the harbor. The pond at the Hole-in-the-Head near Campbell Cove is also a possible place to encounter them.
It looks like this individual is on a nest (note the placement of the horizontal sticks). I think it's a second-year bird. It lacks the streaking of a juvenile, but the crown is brown rather than jet black. Darker crowns are more typical of full adults.
Can you guess how many species of herons and egrets have been observed on Bodega Head or in Bodega Harbor? And how many of those nest locally? [Warning: The answers follow the next image of Snowy Egrets (taken in March 2011).]
Seven species of herons and egrets have been observed on Bodega Head or in Bodega Harbor: Four nest locally (Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Great Egret, Snowy Egret) and three others have been recorded as accidentals (Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, Cattle Egret).
BCNH are my favorite birds. We had several roost in a live oak tree above our house in Savannah for several years. I have also seen them on docks in San Diego.
ReplyDeletebtw, I'm unable to post comments via Name/URL on my phone.
Hi, Jeremy! Well, this is a tough one, as I don't even have a cell phone (except for emergencies), nevermind a smartphone. I tried to look into it, and it's possible there are compatibility issues with either operating systems or browsers. I can't see how to modify any settings related to this in the blog, so unfortunately, it appears that comments may not work with some systems/browsers. Sorry about that! But thanks so much for hanging in there and submitting comments when you can!
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