Nankeen Night-heronScientific name: Nycticorax caledonicus
Meaning of name: Nycticorax is from the Greek words nyx or nyctos, meaning night, and corax, meaning crow. Caledonicus means of New Caledonia.
Distribution: Widespread through east, north and the south west of Australia.
Description: This bird can be up to 65cm long with a 110cm wingspan.
Notes: The furthest distance recorded by the Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme for this species of bird to travel is 2,993km. The oldest bird recorded was still alive when its band was read in April 1994, 10 years 7.1 months after being banded (information as at 13 June 2012).
The photographs for this species were not taken in the reserves of interest to the FQPB.
References: Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds. Various contributors.
What Bird is That? Neville W Cayley. 1978
Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/science/abbbs/abbbs-search.html
Nankeen Night-herons can be seen more easily during October to January, the breeding season, than at other times of the year.
Photograph courtesy of Gary Tate.
Photograph courtesy of Gary Tate.
This is a juvenile bird. Photograph courtesy of Gary Tate.
This is a juvenile bird.
