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Australian Wildlife

  Great-billed Heron (Ardea sumatrana)





Great-billed Heron | Ardea sumatrana photo
Great-billed Heron

Image by Melanie - Some rights reserved.    (view image details)







GREAT-BILLED HERON FACTS

Description
The Great-billed Heron is a large heron. It is grey with long heavy bill. It has some long lighter grey plumes on head upper breast and shoulders giving a streaked appearance. The eye is yellow, with some yellow skin surrounding it. Young birds are similar to adults but browner and do not have the lighter plumes

Size
105cm - 115cm

Habitat
river systems, mangroves, coral reefs, mudflats, offshore islands

Food
fish, crustaceans, frogs, insects

Breeding
Lays two pale blue or pale green eggs in large nest made of sticks in tree usually overhanging water

Range
coastal areas of northern Australia from north west of Western Australia, Northern Territory, around the Gulf of Carpentaria and along the eastern coast of Queensland. It is also found in southeast Asia and Papua New Guinea

distribution map showing range of Ardea sumatrana in Australia

Credits:
Map is from Atlas of Living Australia website at https://biocache.ala.org.au licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.



Classification
Class:Aves
Order:Ciconiiformes
Family:Ardeidae
Genus:Ardea
Species:sumatrana
Common Name:Great-billed Heron

Relatives in same Genus
  Great Egret (A. alba)
  Cattle Egret (A. ibis)
  Intermediate Egret (A. intermedia)
  Pacific Heron (A. pacifica)
  Pied Heron (A. picata)