Hello! We are the Majestic Purple Herons. We are distinguished by our “S” shaped neck and our big body. Have a look at some important points about us:
- We are big birds with powerful beaks. We can hold various kinds of fish with our bill. We stalk and hunt the prey.
- We have a very large range covering Europe, Asia, and Africa. We are migratory birds and travel from north to south.
- We travel thousands of kilometers looking at the beautiful nature lying in different countries. We can travel 3500-4000 kilometers in 5-7 days with brief stops.
- We can be both nocturnal and diurnal. We are slow fliers and the flight speed when we are nocturnal is 39.2kmph to 42.4kmph and the flight speed when we are diurnal is 39.3kmph to 44.7kmph.
- We are called Herons because the Latin word heron means “purple colored”. The word describes us as we possess plumage that is greyish-purple in color.
- Do not threaten us! You cannot bear our high-pitched voice we give out when we feel threatened.
SOME QUICK FACTS ABOUT US:
Our Scientific Name: Ardea purpurea.
Identification: Big reddish-brown bird with long bill and “S” shaped neck. Our Habitat: marshes, lagoons, and lakes where there is dense vegetation.
Our Range:
Food Habits: Omnivorous; feed mainly on fish, mammals, amphibians, crustaceans, small birds, snakes, lizards, snails, spiders, grasshoppers, dragonflies, bees, and flies.
Breeding Period: April to June as well as November to March.
Number of eggs laid: 2-4 eggs.
Incubation period: about 30 days.
Lifespan: 20-24 years.
IUCN red list status: Least Concern.
CITES: Not listed.
Indian Wildlife Protection Act: Schedule IV.
SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Pelecaniformes
Family: Ardeidae
Genus: Ardea
Species: A. purpurea
COMPLETE DETAILS ABOUT US FOR ANIMAL ENTHUSIASTS:
We are the Purple Heron. The name Heron is a Latin word meaning “colored purple”. We are wide-ranging species. . We are scientifically called as Ardea purpurea.
HOW WE LOOK:
We are large birds. We have a greyish-purple plumage. Adults of our species have a dark grey back, black forehead and crown, dark stripe down the back. The upper parts, as well as the tail, are brownish-grey in color.
Our beaks are strong, powerful and brownish-yellow in color. The eyes are yellow in color. Legs are brown and yellow in color. Males and females look alike while the young ones are featherless at birth and slowly look like adults as they grow. We have a height of 70cm-94cm, weigh 0.5kg-1.35kg and have a wingspan of 120cm-152cm.
WE ARE FOUND IN:
We prefer living in habitats like marshes, lagoons, and lakes where there is dense vegetation.
We have an extremely wide range across Europe, Asia, and Africa. The range of our western race lies in Spain, North & east coast of Africa, Southern & Eastern Europe, and Madagascar. The range of our eastern race lies in the Indian Subcontinent, Eastern China and the Philippines.
We are also migratory birds and western race of our species migrate southwards towards tropical Africa between August and October and go back in March.
WHAT WE EAT:
We are omnivorous species and we eat mainly on fish, mammals, and amphibians. We also eat crustaceans, small birds, snakes, lizards, snails, spiders and insects like grasshoppers, dragonflies, bees, and flies.
OUR REPRODUCTION:
We mostly live in colonies but sometimes are solitary. The pair of our species construct nest near large lakes. The breeding season is between April to June as well as November to March. Generally, 2-4 eggs are laid by the female. The incubation period is about 30 days and done by both parents.
Parents provide food and care to the young chicks and these young chicks leave the nest after about six weeks and become independent after 2 months. Our expected lifespan is 20-24 years.
MORE ABOUT US:
We are noisy birds with a high-pitched voice.
We have a slow flight.
We have a powerful beak with which we attack the prey waiting motionless and slowly stalking it.
OUR CONSERVATION:
We have a very huge population, estimated to be between 2,70,000 to 5,70,000 in the world. The population is reducing slowly but not fast enough to be considered as threatened species. IUCN considers our species as “Least Concern” in its red list. In India, we are protected under Schedule IV of Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
