Black Crowned Night Heron

This Black Crowned Night Heron was photographed at the George C. Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary. The sanctuary is a protected area in Delta, British Columbia, Canada and is part the Fraser River estuary. The area includes managed wetlands, marshes and dikes.

Black-crowned Night-Herons are stout birds compared to many of their lanky heron relatives.  During the night and dusk they are most active. They forage in water, on mudflats, and on land by standing still for hours waiting to ambush prey. They predominantly eat small fish, shellfish, frogs, insects, small mammals and may also eat small birds.

In the daylight hours Black crowned Night Herons spend their days perched in trees trying to conceal themselves among the foliage.  They are a social bird and breed in colonies of nests made from sticks over a body of water in mating season.

EXIF Data

Aperture – ƒ/6.3
Camera – NIKON D800
Date Created – 2014:01:20 09:45
Focal length – 500mm
ISO – 640
Exposure Time – 1/100