Black-crowned Night Heron

The Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) is a medium-sized bird found almost worldwide except for polar regions and Australasia. They are resident through most of this range, only the northernmost populations migrate southwards during the winter months. Their diet consists mainly of small fish, crustaceans, frogs, aquatic insects, small mammals, as well as small birds and consequently their favourite habitats are fresh- and saltwater wetlands. True to their name, the birds are active mainly at night and early mornings, while the days are spent in trees or bushes. They are gregarious, live in groups, and also breed in colonies. I have spotted these pretty birds during a walk through Kachchh in western India (January 2015).

Black-crowned Night Heron

night herons and a Little Cormorant