Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron
Nyctanassa violacea
The Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron is a stocky native wader often seen hunting crabs along Florida shorelines, canals, and neighborhood ponds.
The Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron is a stocky native wader often seen hunting crabs along Florida shorelines, canals, and neighborhood ponds.
Adults are gray with a black face, white cheek patch, yellow-white crown, red eyes, and a thick dark bill. Juveniles are brown with fine pale spots, long legs, and a heavy bill.
Rests in trees by day and often feeds from dusk through night. It walks slowly, watches the water, and strikes quickly at crustaceans.
Harmless to people. Give feeding birds and nesting colonies ample space and keep dogs away from shoreline roosts.
Protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Do not capture, feed, harass, or disturb birds, nests, eggs, or young.
Habitat:
Freshwater Wetlands, Estuaries and Bays, Mangroves and Salt Marshes, Urban and Residential Areas
Area / Range:
Statewide
Diet:
Primarily crabs and crayfish, plus fish, insects, snails, frogs, and other small aquatic animals.
Behavior:
Rests in trees by day and often feeds from dusk through night. It walks slowly, watches the water, and strikes quickly at crustaceans.
Dusk, Nighttime, Dawn
Active Times:
Best time to see:
Dusk and early morning near mangroves, seawalls, tidal creeks, and pond edges
Florida Native Status:
Native
Conservation Status:
Least Concern
Safety Level:
Observe From a Distance
Safety Information:
Harmless to people. Give feeding birds and nesting colonies ample space and keep dogs away from shoreline roosts.
Benefits to Property:
Consumes crabs, crayfish, and other aquatic prey and indicates productive shoreline habitat.
Property Concerns:
Nesting groups may create noise and droppings. Tree removal, shoreline hardening, and disturbance reduce feeding and nesting habitat.
Fun Fact:
Its thick bill is adapted for handling hard-shelled prey. Young birds look very different from the sharply patterned adults.
Wildlife Laws:
Protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Do not capture, feed, harass, or disturb birds, nests, eggs, or young.
Identification:
Adults are gray with a black face, white cheek patch, yellow-white crown, red eyes, and a thick dark bill. Juveniles are brown with fine pale spots, long legs, and a heavy bill.