Black-headed Heron (Ardea melanocephala)

Family
Ardeidae (Herons)

Size
85 cm

First Described (Guide)
Vigors & Children, 1826

Habitat
Marshes with reed and papyrus beds, the margins of rivers and lakes, estuaries, coastal creeks and flats, temporary pools and natural savannas or artificial grasslands, cultivated land.

Range (Guide)

Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo [The Democratic Republic of the], Congo [The Democratic Republic of the], C�te dIvoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania [United Republic of], Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Vagrant to Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Madagascar, Oman, Yemen.

Unknown to Djibouti.

Africa south of Sahara, from Senegal to Ethiopia and south to South Africa.

Rarity Status
Currently this species is not classified as a rarity in this country OR information has not been updated.

Population
Estimated population is 100,000 - 500,000 (2010).

Status LC
Hunting and trapping for trade are the main threats.

For more information see BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

Habits
Usually solitary but occasionally loose flocks. Roots in groups of tens to hundreds.

Food
Terrestrial and aquatic insects, earthworms, crabs, Arachnids, small mammals, lizards, snakes, frogs, birds, fish. Insects are most important during the rains and become less important as grasslands dry out.

Voice
Xeno-Canto Sound Files (more (22)...)

Black-headed Heron (Ardea melanocephala) [XC72891]
by Rory Nefdt from Makindu, Kenya (call)

Black-headed Heron (Ardea melanocephala) [XC670604]
by Peter Boesman from Mandegee farm, oloitoktok, Kenya (call, mobbing call)

Nest
A platform composed of sticks located high in a trees or in reedbeds, papyrus beds, floating islands of papyrus or on sandstone ledges. In colonies with up to 35 pairs nesting in one tree.

Subspecies
Forms superspecies with Madagascar Heron (Ardea humbloti).

No subspecies.

References
See References.

Files:

JPG files for Black-headed Heron (Ardea melanocephala) - 10 files

More Information

BirdLife International

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BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

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