Ardeidae Bitterns, Herons and Egrets Extant Pterodactyls

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ArdeidaeBitterns, Herons and EgretsExtant
Pterodactyls

• What Order?
• Ciconiiformes

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Ciconiiformes

• Families
• Ardeidae
• Balaenicipitidae
• Scopidae
• Ciconiidae
• Threskiornithidae
• Phoenicopteridae (?)

• Number of Species
• 59 Herons, bitterns, egrets
• 1 Shoebill
• 1 Hammerkop
• 19 Storks
• 29 Ibises and Spoonbills
• 4 Flamingos

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Neat idea!

• Carthartidae New World Vultures may be possible
  Ciconiiforms

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Relatives?

• Balaenicipitidae- Pelicaniform

• Eurypygidae - Gruiform

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• (Mayr and Clarke, 2003) Cladistics

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Those other relatives we no longer speak to
Systematically, Ardeids are more closely related
to Sunbitterns than Sunbitterns are related to
Bustards, yet they are both Gruiforms!

• Otididae Gruiform

• Threskiornithidae - Ciconiiforms

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Distributions

• Actually entire US and parts of Mexico (although
  not all Ardeids are equally distributed, of
  course)

• Black Heron, Black-Headed Heron, African
  Green-Backed Heron and many others
• Chinese Pond Heron and Grey Heron (also found in
  parts of Africa)

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Foreigners
Black Heron
Chinese Pond Heron
African Green-Backed Heron
Black-headed Heron
Madagascar Heron
Squacco Heron
Goliath Heron
White-Crested (fasciated) Tiger Heron
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Patriots
AZ
uncommon, But seen in AZ
American Bittern
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Little Egret rare to US, but seen
Reddish Egret
Snowy Egret
Great Egret
Tricolored Heron
Little Blue Heron
Yellow-crowned Night Heron
Black-crowned Night Heron
Green Heron
Cattle Egret
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Confusing Plumage
Reddish Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Egret
Little Blue Heron (Juvenile)
Cattle Egret
Great Egret
Great Blue Heron (White Morph)
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Which Ardeid is this?
Grey Heron - Eurasia
Great-Blue Heron Nearctic
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Broad Ardeid Facts

• Solitary or Colonial Nesters (in trees, near
  water)
• Many monogamous biparental care
• Elegant courtship displays (flying around,
  dancing, etc)
• Long necks and long, pointed bills for spearing
  fish and other prey (aquatic inverts, reptiles,
  amphibians, small mammals) hunt by either
  standing and creeping slowly in water or on
  vegetation close to or overlapping water
• Varied size range (Lengths 60 (5 ft!)
  Goliath Heron 13 Least Bittern
  Wingspans 72 Great Blue 17 Least
  Bittern weights 5.3 lbs Great Blue 0.17
  lbs Least Bittern)

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Feeding

• Green Heron foraging walk in water
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?v2z3zDMekjJk
• Black Heron canopy hunters
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vREiynfAdFSA

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Arizona Ardeids (Bitterns)
Cryptic Marsh Birds, easier to hear than see

• Least Bittern
• Smallest Heron
• Usually crouched in weeds
• Black back (mantle, scapulars, rump) with white
  lines, black crown
• Uncommon, seen in Southern AZ

• American Bittern
• -Large and heavy bodied
• -clearly stripped breast and belly
• -More common, Southern AZ, winter range
  migrates through Northern parts of AZ
• Agonizingly slow gait (Sibley, 2006)

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Arizona Ardeids
Widespread in AZ, often gathered in flocks
(especially Snowy)

• Great Egret
• No plumes
• Thin, yellow bill, slightly downcurved
• Black feet
• Larger than Snowy (L. 39, WS. 51)

• Snowy Egret
• Yellow lores
• Yellow feet
• Lacy plumes
• Smaller than Greater (L. 24, WS. 41

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Arizona Ardeids
Migrate through AZ, small flocks in upland
habitat, often near livestock

• Cattle Egret
• Primarily eats insects
• Stocky necks
• short, dark legs (orange in breeding season)
• Unlike many Herons, forage on land, never in
  water (Sibley, 2006)
• Self-introduced to New Zealand (first seen in
  1963) considered native

Nonbreeding
Breeding
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Arizona Ardeids(mini- Herons)
Both primarily eat Fish

• Black-crowned Night Heron
• Nocturnal foragers
• red eye
• dark crown stops before bill, white nasal patch
• Dark, black back
• stocky, shorter bill

• Green Heron
• Rufous-colored neck
• yellow eye
• Dark crown extending to bill
• Green, irridescent remiges and back
• Long, straight bill

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Arizona ArdeidsThe modern pterodactyl

• Great Blue Heron
• Very common
• Largest Heron in US (can kill a man!)
• stand stall and frequently stationary in water
  when feeding
• Plumes on head (males) and puffy breast plumage

Avian Research Approachability Index (ARAI) For
Great Blue Herons 8 ft. ARAI (B D)/(S x E
x H) B boldness of researcher (testosterone
caffeine idiocy2) D Time of Day S size of
bird E habitat H satiation (hunger needs met)
(Publication in press)
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Done!
Lava Heron of the Galápagos
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Ciconiidae

• TYLER WEISS

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Ciconiidae

• In the order Ciconiiformes, family are identified
  by bill shape
• Ciconiidae- have large, straight bill, sometimes
  curved
• Large wading birds, often in or around water
• Long legs
• Diet consists of fish, amphibians, invertebrates,
  reptiles, and small mammals

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Order Ciconiiformes
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Ciconiidae

• Storks
• 6 genera and 19 different species
• Genera includes Anastomus, Ciconia,
  Ephippiorhynchus, Jabiru, Leptoptilos, Mycteria
• No syrinx, they are mute, communicate by bill
  clattering
• Monogamous by nest, sometimes change mates yearly
• Can live up to 30-40 years

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Pictures of Ciconiidae
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Ciconiidae of North America

• Only 2 storks in N. America
• Wood Stork- Lives in Georgia
• and Florida
• Jabiru Stork- Lives in S. America, breeds in
  Texas and Oklahoma
• occasionally

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Interesting Facts

• Pictures of storks carrying babies because of
  their great parental care
• Marabou stork has largest wingspan of land birds
  at 10.5ft wide
• Marabou Stork of Africa can
• reach 5 ft tall
• -Nests can be 10ft deep and 6ft
• wide
• - Colony nesters

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Any Questions Folks?