Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)

Other Names (World)
Grey Heron, Gray Heron

Family
Ardeidae (Herons)

Size
90 - 98 cm
Wingspan: 155 - 175 cm

First Described (Guide)
Linnaeus, 1758

Derivation
Ard'-e-a - L., heron: cin-er'-e-a - L., cinereus, ashen

Abundance (Guide)
R-V

Possible rare vagrant to Australia.

Habitat
Wetlands, sometimes coasts.

Range (Guide)

Afghanistan (NB) (P), Albania (B) (NB), Algeria, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua And Barbuda, Armenia (B) (NB), Austria (B) (NB), Azerbaijan (B) (NB) (P), Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus (B) (NB), Belgium (B) (NB), Benin, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina (B) (NB), Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria (B) (NB) (P), Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, China (mainland), Comoros, Congo [The Democratic Republic of the], Congo [The Democratic Republic of the], C�te dIvoire, Croatia (Local Name: Hrvatska) (B) (NB), Cyprus (NB) (P), Czech Republic (B) (NB) (P), Denmark (B) (NB) (P), Djibouti, Dominica, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia (B) (NB), Ethiopia, Faroe Islands (NB), Finland (B) (NB) (P), France (B) (NB) (P), Gabon, Gambia, Germany (B) (NB) (P), Ghana, Gibraltar (NB), Greece (B) (NB) (P), Guadeloupe, Guam (NB), Guinea, Guinea-bissau, Hong Kong (China), Hungary (B) (NB), Iceland (NB), India, Indonesia, Iran [Islamic Republic of] (NB) (P), Iraq (B) (NB) (P), Ireland (B) (NB), Israel (NB) (P), Italy (B) (NB), Japan, Jordan (B) (NB) (P), Kazakhstan (B), Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan (B), Laos, Latvia (B) (NB), Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Liechtenstein (B) (NB), Lithuania (B) (NB), Luxembourg (B) (NB), Macedonia [The Former Yugoslav Republic of] (B) (NB), Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives (B), Mali, Malta, Martinique, Mauritania, Mayotte, Micronesia [Federated States of] (NB), Moldova [Republic of] (B) (NB) (P), Mongolia (B), Montenegro (B) (NB), Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands Antilles (B) (NB), Niger, Nigeria, North Korea (B), Northern Mariana Islands (NB), Norway (B) (NB), Oman (NB), Pakistan, Philippines, Poland (B) (NB) (P), Portugal (B) (NB), Qatar, Romania (B) (NB) (P), Russia (Asian) (B), Russia (Central Asian) (B), Russia (European) (B) (NB) (P), Rwanda, Saudi Arabia (NB), Senegal, Serbia (B) (NB), Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia (Slovak Republic) (B) (NB) (P), Slovenia (B) (NB), Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain (B) (NB), Sri Lanka, St Kitts And Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and The Grenadines, Sudan, Swaziland, Sweden (B) (NB) (P), Switzerland (B) (NB), Syrian Arab Republic, Taiwan (China), Tajikistan (B), Tanzania [United Republic of], Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey (B) (NB), Turkmenistan (B), Uganda, Ukraine (B) (NB) (P), United Arab Emirates (NB) (P), United Kingdom (B) (NB), Uzbekistan (B), Vietnam, Western Sahara, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Vagrant to Greenland, St Helena, St Pierre and Miquelon, Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands.

Unknown to Australia, Palau.

(Last update: 14/02/2008)

Europe.

Rarity Status
View Rarity Status Information

Population
Estimated population is 790,000 - 3,700,000 (2010).

Status LC
For more information see BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

Food
Fish, frogs and other aquatic animals.

Voice
A loud, harsh 'frank' or 'kaark' call, often in flight, otherwise usually silent. At nesting colonies a variety of croaking calls. Young birds utter pig-like squeals.

Xeno-Canto Sound Files (more (40)...)

Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) [XC897438]
by Paul Kelly from R\u00f9m, Highland Council, Scotland, United Kingdom (nocturnal flight call)

Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) [XC877553]
by Mark Pearson from Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis, Diepentalsperre, Germany (call)

Breeding Season (Guide)
Does not breed in Australia. Breeds in Europe.

Nest
Bulky stick structure, in trees, close to lakes, the sea-shore or other wetlands. Also in reeds. In colonies.

Eggs (Guide)
3 - 6, usually 4; matt, greenish blue. Incubation: 24 - 27 days; by both sexes.

Young
Fledge in about 49 - 56 days. Fed by regurgitation by both parents.

Subspecies
The following 4 subspecies are recognised:

cinerea Linnaeus, 1758 - Europe, Africa, western Asia.
jouyi Clark, AH, 1907 - Eastern Asia.
firasa Hartert, 1917 - Madagascar.
monicae Jouanin & Roux, 1963 - Islands off Banc d'Arguin, Mauritania.

Similar Species
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias).

References
See References.

The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9

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