Ardeidae
Introduction
The Ardeidae (or ardeids) are a family of birds made up of 19 genera and 67 species of herons, egrets, bitterns and related species (crabbers, night herons, savacou, onorés and bittern).
The Ardeidae are a family of wading birds.
Birds of the family Aradeidae (Ardeidae) are waders of the order Pelecaniformes. In Quebec, you can see egrets, night herons, bitterns, herons, and bitterns. This family includes 67 species worldwide, of which a dozen can be observed in Canada.
They are large wading birds, the smallest of which, in Quebec, is the least bittern. With a few exceptions, they are aquatic birds, some of which live in open areas, near banks, in marshes and other waterways where they feed. They feed on batrachians, larvae, invertebrates, insects, and small crustaceans that they capture in the shallow waterways they frequent.
Depending on the species, they can measure between 27 and 140 cm. They have a long neck, long legs, and a very short tail. They are fairly stocky-bodied birds with long, broad, rounded-tipped wings. The narrow, pointed beak is usually longer in length than the head, allowing them to spear passing fish or frogs. They usually remain motionless, slowly approaching prey and quickly capturing it once it is within range.
The long legs are provided with long tapered fingers which give them good stability at the bottom of the water, or on the branches. There are few or no dismorphisms, and females and males are identical. Several have ornamental crests or feathers during the mating season. The majority have a lore, the part between the beak and the eye, devoid of feathers.
Most Ardeidae build a nest in a tree, a bush, or on a platform, with branches, which they then line with grass, stems, and other materials. With a few exceptions, both parents take turns incubating the eggs, while the other feeds.
The babies are covered in down from birth. They are altricial and stay in the nest for a good period of time, during which they are fed by both parents. Species that nest in the northern part of the globe during summer then migrate south once autumn arrives, returning to warmer regions where prey will be available.
We will identify the different species of Ardeidae by their colors, patterns, size and other physical characteristics of the animal.
Description
These birds are medium to large (27 to 140 cm) waders with long beaks, long necks and long legs.
Alphabetical list of genres
Agamia (f.) Reichenbach, 1853
Ardea Linnaeus, 1758
Ardeola Boie, 1822
Botaurus Stephens, 1819
Bubulcus Bonaparte, 1855
Butorides Blyth, 1852
Cochlearius (m.) Brisson, 1760
Dupetor Heine & Reichenow, 1890
Egretta Forster, 1817
Gorsachius Bonaparte, 1855
Ixobrychus Billberg, 1828
Nyctanassa Stejneger, 1887
Nycticorax Forster, 1817
Philherodius Bonaparte, 1855
Syrigma Ridgway, 1878
Tigriornis (f.) Sharpe, 1895
Tigrisoma (n.) Swainson, 1827
Zebrilus (m.) Bonaparte, 1855
Zonerodius (m.) Salvadori, 1882
Habitats and distribution
Cosmopolitan with the exception of Antarctica, they show the greatest diversity in the tropics. They frequent a wide variety of wetlands; a few species are primarily terrestrial.
List of species
According to the reference classification of the International Ornithological Congress:
Subfamily Tigrisomatinae Payne and Risley, 1976
Onore phaeton — Zonerodius heliosylus (Lesson, 1828)
White-crested Onora — Tigriornis leucolopha (Jardine, 1846)
Striped Onorah — Tigrisoma lineatum (Boddaert, 1783)
Fascinating Onore — Tigrisoma fasciatum (Such, 1825)
Mexican Onorah — Tigrisoma mexicanum Swainson, 1834
Agami heron — Agami agami (Gmelin, 1789)
Subfamily Cochleariinae Chenu & Des Murs, 1854
Crested Savacou — Cochlearius cochlearius (Linnaeus, 1766)
Subfamily Botaurinae Reichenbach, 1850
Onore zigzag — Zebrilus undulatus (Gmelin, 1789)
Bittern — Botaurus stellaris
Australian Bittern — Botaurus poiciloptilus
American Bittern — Botaurus lentiginosus
Mirasol Bittern — Botaurus pinnatus
Variegated bittern — Ixobrychus involucris
Least Bittern — Ixobrychus exilis
Least Bittern — Ixobrychus minutus
Chinese bittern — Ixobrychus sinensis
Schrenck's Bittern — Ixobrychus eurhythmus
Cinnamon bittern — Ixobrychus cinnamomeus
Sturm's Bittern — Ixobrychus sturmii
Black-backed Bittern — Ixobrychus dubius
Yellow-naped Bittern — Dupetor flavicollis
Subfamily Ardeinae Leach, 1820; including Nycticoracinae Bonaparte, 1854
Gorsachius magnificus – Superb night heron
Gorsachius goisagi – Night Heron goisagi
Gorsachius melanolophus – Malayan night heron
Gorsachius leuconotus – White-backed night heron
Nycticorax nycticorax – Black-crowned Night Heron
Nycticorax caledonicus – Cinnamon night heron
Nyctanassa violacea – Violet Night-Heron
Butorides virescens – Green Heron
Butorides sundevalli – Galapagos heron
Butorides striata – Striped Heron
Ardeola ralloides – Hairy crabeater
Ardeola grayii – Grey's crabeater
Ardeola bacchus – Chinese crabeater
Ardeola speciosa – Malayan crabeater
Ardeola idae – White crabeater
Ardeola rufiventris – Rufous-bellied crabeater
Bubulcus ibis – Cattle Egret
Bubulcus coromandus – Asiatic oxguard
Ardea cinerea – Gray Heron
Ardea herodias – Great Blue Heron
Ardea cocoi – Cocoi Heron
Ardea pacifica – White-headed Heron
Ardea melanocephala – melanocephalic heron
Ardea humbloti – Humblot's heron
Ardea insignis – Imperial Heron
Ardea sumatrana – Typhoon heron
Ardea goliath – Heron goliath
Ardea purpurea – purple heron
Ardea alba – Great Egret
Ardea modesta – Australasian Egret
Pilherodius pileatus – Capped Heron
Syrigma sibilatrix – Sunflute Heron
Egretta intermedia – Intermediate heron
Egretta picata – Pied heron
Egretta novaehollandiae – White-faced Egret
Egretta rufescens – Reddish Egret
Egretta ardesiaca – Slaty Egret
Egretta vinaceigula – Slaty Egret
Egretta tricolor – Tricolored Egret
Egretta caerulea – Blue Egret
Egretta thula – Snowy Egret
Egretta garzetta – Little Egret
Egretta gularis – White-throated Egret
Egretta dimorpha – Dimorphic Egret
Egretta sacra – Sacred Egret
Egretta eulophotes – Chinese Egret
extinct species
Reunion night-heron — Nycticorax duboisi
Mauritius night heron — Nycticorax mauritianus
Rodrigues night heron — Nycticorax megacephalus