Black-crowned night-heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
Identification Tips:
- Sexes similar
- Fairly small, stocky, short-legged and short-necked heron
- Bill medium-sized and pointed
- Tucks neck in close to body in flight and at rest, rarely
extending it
Adult:
- Red eyes, legs yellow
- Black bill
- Black crown and back
- White face, throat, foreneck, chest and belly
- Blue-gray wings
- Two long, white, filamentous plumes extending from back of head
in alternate plumage
Juvenile:
- Eyes yellowish to amber, legs dull greyish
- Yellow base to bill
- Brown head, neck, chest and belly streaked with buff and white
- Wings and back darker brown with large white spots at the tips of
the feathers; spots especially large on the
greater secondary coverts
Immature:
- Acquires full adult plumage in its third year
- First year birds are similar to juvenile, but have less extensive
spotting on upperwings and a dark cap
- Second year birds resemble the adult, but have a brown
neck and wings contrasting with darker brown cap and back
Similar species:
Adults are unmistakable. Immatures can be separated from
American Bittern by pale spotting on the upperwing, lack
of black neck spot, different shape, stouter bills and more even
upperwing coloration in flight.
Juvenile Yellow-crowned Night-Heron has smaller spots on
greater secondary coverts, smaller spots on head and neck,
thicker bill, and longer legs. Immature Black Crowns
can show a variety of plumage characters so are best separated from
immature Yellow-crowns by their smaller, thinner bill and shorter
legs.