Nankeen Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus) | Photos, Calls and ID

LCLeast ConcernOmnivore

WetlandPlatform nestLarge · 856 g

Nankeen Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus), photo 4 — Photo: Lukas Krug · CC BY 4.0

Nankeen Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus), photo 5 — Photo: Lukas Krug · CC BY 4.0

Nankeen Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus), photo 6 — Photo: jstarspots · CC0

Nankeen Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus), photo 7 — Photo: Nathan Ruser · CC BY 4.0

What the Nankeen Night Heron sounds like

Sonogram of the Nankeen Night Heron: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.

Recorded by Richard Fuller · Nocturnal flight call · Carindale, Brisbane City, Queensland, Australia · CC0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

The nankeen night heron is a medium-sized heron. The adult male is 55 to 65 cm in length, while the female is slightly smaller, measuring 55 to 60 cm. Its weight varies from 810 g to 1014 g, and the wingspan ranges from 95 to 105 cm. Other than females being smaller in most measurements, the sexes of the nankeen night heron are alike in appearance. The nankeen night heron has a heavy black bill, which is similar in length as its head. The face is white with a cinnamon tint, and the nape and crown of breeding adults is a grey-black. Voice: Adult male nankeen night herons give a qu-arck sound when departing their roost at night, while females and juvenile nankeen night herons give a higher pitched qu-ook sound. When disturbed during roosting, the heron gives a short, deep quock. The nankeen night heron gives a hoarse, croaking quok when in flight, and a harsh croak sound while feeding in a group.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Nankeen Night Heron

One bar for each month, and every month is filled: this bird is recorded here in all twelve. The wide bar is January, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Nankeen Night Heron

Regular rangeRare visitor

The map shades 13 countries with regular records, and 1 more in a lighter tone where the bird turns up only as a stray. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

Australia Philippines Palau Malaysia Papua New Guinea Indonesia New Zealand New Caledonia Taiwan Solomon Islands Timor-Leste Micronesia Brunei

Recorded as a rare visitor in Singapore.

About the Nankeen Night Heron

The nankeen night heron is a heron that belongs to the genus Nycticorax and the family Ardeidae. Due to its distinctive reddish-brown colour, it is also commonly referred to as the rufous night heron. It is primarily nocturnal and is observed in a broad range of habitats, including forests, meadows, shores, reefs, marshes, grasslands, and swamps. The species is 55 to 65 cm in length, with rich cinnamon upperparts and white underparts. The nankeen night heron has a stable population size, and is classified as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Black-crowned Night HeronNycticorax nycticoraxAdults have a black crown and back with the remainder of the body white or grey, red eyes, and short yellow legs.

Side by side: Black-crowned Night Heron vs Nankeen Night Heron

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