Free Images - SnappyGoat.com- bestof:purple heron ardea purpurea wader heron bird kill water snake ardeidae india

Click Here for More Images from iStock- 15% off with coupon 15FREEIMAGES

A Purple Heron has caught a fish and flying with the catch.

A Chinese Pond Heron hinting in a pond in early morning light. Hong Kong, China

Purple Heron in grassland at Chilika lake Manglajodi, India.

Purple heron at nest with chicks (Ardea purpurea)

American bittern heron species bird closeup face

$L70-90cm, WS 120-138cm.\nBreeds in colonies at extensive, shallow swampy lakes with reed beds.\nForages in swallow water in gaps among reeds and along rivers, or more in open in wet meadows.\nSummer visitor (mostly Apr-Oct), wintering in tropical Africa.\nFeeds on fish, frogs and insects.\nNests in reeds or trees.\n\nThis is not a very common Heron in the Netherlands, but can be seen in numbers in the described Habitats.$

clear picture of grey heron bird flying up ocean in the background

The Purple Heron is a wide-ranging heron species with a Snake Kill.

$Purple Heron.\nThe purple heron (Ardea purpurea) is a wide-ranging heron species. It breeds in Africa, central and southern Europe, and southern and eastern Palearctic. The Western Palearctic populations migrate between breeding and wintering habitats whereas the African and tropical-Asian populations are primarily sedentary, except for occasional dispersive movements.\n\nIt is similar in appearance to the more common grey heron but is slightly smaller, more slender and has darker plumage. It is also a more evasive bird, favouring densely vegetated habitats near water, particularly reed beds. It hunts for a range of prey including fish, rodents, frogs and insects, either stalking them or standing waiting in ambush.\n\nPurple herons are colonial breeders and build a bulky nest out of dead reeds or sticks close to the water' edge among reeds or in dense vegetation. About five bluish-green eggs are laid and are incubated by both birds. The young hatch about four weeks later and fledge six weeks after that. The International Union for Conservation of Nature notes that the global population trend is downwards, largely because of the drainage of wetlands, but assesses the purple heron's conservation status as being of \$

The painted stork is a large wader in the stork family. It is found in the wetlands of the plains of tropical Asia south of the Himalayas in the Indian Subcontinent and extending into Southeast Asia.

Purple heron at the nest with its chicks

Indian pond heron , grey heron purple heron are catching fish from the ponds and wetlands of Pakistan

Tiger Heron with a snake on a river bank at Carara national park - Costa Rica

Purple heron (Ardea purpurea) in Borneo island,Malaysia

$Black-headed Heron.\nThe black-headed heron (Ardea melanocephala) is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae, common throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar. It is mainly resident, but some west African birds move further north in the rainy season.\n\nThis species usually breeds in the wet season in colonies in trees, reedbeds or cliffs. It builds a bulky stick nest, and lays 2–4 eggs.\n\nIt often feeds in shallow water, spearing fish or frogs with its long, sharp bill. It will also hunt well away from water, taking large insects, small mammals, and birds. It will wait motionless for its prey, or slowly stalk its victim.\n\nThe black-headed heron is a large bird, standing 85 cm tall, and it has a 150 cm wingspan. It is nearly as large as the grey heron, which it resembles in appearance, although it is generally darker. Its plumage is largely grey above, and paler grey below. It has a powerful dusky bill.\n\nThe flight is slow, with the neck retracted. This is characteristic of herons and bitterns, and distinguishes them from storks, cranes, and spoonbills, which extend their necks. The white underwing coverts are striking in flight.\n\nThe call is a loud croaking.$

Elegant Purple Heron, Ardea purpurea, gracing the wetlands of France with its distinctive plumage.

Rufescent tiger heron (Tigrisoma lineatum). It was classified by French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon in 1780.

The purple heron inhabits marshes, lagoons and lakes surrounded by dense vegetation. It may frequent mangrove swamps on the coast but it usually chooses freshwater habitats, particularly locations with Phragmites reed beds. It also visits mudflats, river banks, ditches and canals.[5] In the Cape Verde Islands, it is more likely to be seen in the open, on arid slopes

A beautiful bird from the Balkans on a colored background.

$Grey Heron.\nThe grey heron (Ardea cinerea) is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia, and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more northern parts migrate southwards in autumn. A bird of wetland areas, it can be seen around lakes, rivers, ponds, marshes and on the sea coast. It feeds mostly on aquatic creatures which it catches after standing stationary beside or in the water, or stalking its prey through the shallows.\n\nStanding up to 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) tall, adults weigh from 1 to 2 kg (2 to 4 lb). They have a white head and neck with a broad black stripe that extends from the eye to the black crest. The body and wings are grey above and the underparts are greyish-white, with some black on the flanks. The long, sharply pointed beak is pinkish-yellow and the legs are brown.\n\nThe birds breed colonially in spring in heronries, usually building their nests high in trees. A clutch of usually three to five bluish-green eggs is laid. Both birds incubate the eggs for around 25 days, and then both feed the chicks, which fledge when 7-8 weeks old. Many juveniles do not survive their first winter, but if they do, they can expect to live for about 5 years.\n\nIn Ancient Egypt, the deity Bennu was depicted as a heron in New Kingdom artwork. In Ancient Rome, the heron was a bird of divination. Roast heron was once a specially prized dish; when George Neville became Archbishop of York in 1465, 400 herons were served to the guests.$

A selection of images of the smaller herons, including bitterns. Many of these are elusive birds of mangrove creeks, marsh herbage etc.

Free Images: "bestof:purple heron ardea purpurea wader heron bird kill water snake ardeidae india"

PUBLIC_DOMAIN_DEDICATION_digionbew_10._june_july_27-06-16_Heron_stalking_LOW_RES_DSC03286.jpg

PUBLIC_DOMAIN_DEDICATOIN_Pixabay-Pexels_digionbew_16._21-08-16_Heron_on_jetty_LOW_RES_DSC00038.jpg

Héron cendré Ardea cinerea Tiergarten Schönbrunn.jpg