Nyctanassa violacea
Yellow-crowned Night Herons are small, stocky herons with short necks and legs, short thick bills, blocky heads and are primarily gray in color. During the breeding season they have a long, white plume on their heads.
Until a few days ago, I hadn't photographed a single Yellow-crowned Night Heron in almost fourteen years. I photographed this one at Sequoyah NWR in Oklahoma.
February 2nd is World Wetlands Day to raise global awareness about the critical role of wetlands for people, wildlife and our planet.
The first bird I photographed that day was a Yellow-crowned Night Heron wandering in the sea fog near the dunes and shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico.
This morning my mind drifted back to June of 2009, to a bright, warm day on the Gulf coast of Florida and a strolling Yellow-crowned Night Heron that I photographed as waves churned up behind it.
I did see and photograph this adult Yellow-crowned Night Heron standing on a grassy sand dune overlooking the Gulf of Mexico in beautiful, soft light.
Gray skies, freezing temps and the inversions are beginning to get to me so I thought I would share some bird images from warmer days on Fort De Soto County Park's north beach in sunny Florida.
The adult Black-crowned and Yellow-crowned Night Herons aren't terribly difficult to tell apart though the juveniles can be more of a challenge.
Despite having "Night Heron" in their name Yellow-crowned Night Herons (Nyctanassa violacea) are not strictly denizens of the dark, they can and do stalk their prey during the daylight hours too.
I recently read about a congenital condition in humans called "iris colobomas" which is also found in other mammals and birds and have begun to wonder if that might not be the cause of the abnormal pupils I see in some species of birds instead of an injury to the eye.
This young Yellow-crowned Night Heron moved very slowly and it seemed to do that deliberately.
It didn't take long for the Yellow-crowned Night Heron to grab the crab and send the sand flying.