Great-billed Heron - BirdForum Opus

Photo by chiemomo
Daintree, North Queensland, December 2003

Ardea sumatrana

Identification

100–115 cm (39¼-45¼ in)
Similar to White-bellied Heron with slightly re-curved bill

Distribution

Asia: China, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Southeast Asia: Indochina, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Borneo, Malay Peninsula, Brunei, Singapore, Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia, Greater Sundas, Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, Lesser Sundas, West Timor, Moluccas, East Timor
Australasia, Papua New Guinea, New Guinea, Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia

Taxonomy

Photo by SeeToh
Pulau Ubin, Singapore, December 2016

Subspecies

There are 2 subspecies^[1]:

• A. s. sumatrana:

• South-east Asia, Indonesia, Philippines and New Guinea

• A. s. mathewsae:

• Tropical northern Australia

Habitat

Favours coastal areas.

Behaviour

Diet

Not a great deal is known, but they eat mostly fish and shellfish in Australia and mudskippers in Borneo

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved August 2014)

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Great-billed Heron. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 24 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Great-billed_Heron

External Links

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