Yellow-crowned Night Heron - Ross Feldner The Yellow-crowned Night Heron, is one of only two species of night heron. Unlike the Black-crowned Night Heron, which is found worldwide, the yellow-crowned only lives in the Americas. Like all herons, the Yellow-crowned Night Heron flies with long, slow wing beats. You will often see it gliding over water with its legs easily visible, extended straight below the tail. Yellow-crowned Night Herons live in shallow water areas like marshes, wooded swamps and lakeshores. Where they live is closely linked to their diet, which consists mainly of crustaceans. But they will also eat insects, eels, worms, small rodents, lizards and snakes. Another important habitat factor is nesting sites. They need bushes or trees to build nests, although they will use rock ledges where vegetation is unavailable. Unlike the Black-crowned Night Heron, the Yellow-crowned does not mind living near humans and can be found in wooded neighborhoods, nesting on rooftops and even driveways! The most common call of the Yellow-crowned Night Heron is a loud, sharp and quick squawk that the bird gives shortly after taking off or uses as an alarm call or an aggression call. | |
