Heron Bird Habitat

The bittern blends in well with its habitat.

The various birds considered herons in North America include a dozen species--the bitterns, egrets and herons--with all of these birds living near the water. All herons are wading birds, primarily going into shallows and along the shore in search of food. Their habitats, whether coastal or inland, will include some body of water from which they capture and consume the creatures that comprise their diets.

Habitat Types

The green heron exists across much of the eastern United States.

Certain heron species require a specific environment. The cattle egret has adapted to living close to livestock such as cows and horses and catching the insects that these large mammals stir up from the ground. The reddish egret lives near shallow saltwater and will run into it to catch fish and crustaceans. The green heron of the eastern United States needs only a small brook or pond to live close to, as long as there is cover from thickets and bushes. Other herons, the great blue heron among them, can exist wherever there is water such as a lake, pond, river or marsh, as long as the food supply is plentiful.

Coastal Herons

The coastal heron species include the reddish egret of the Gulf Coast and the tricolored heron. The reddish egret breeds in the shallow lagoons and bays that dot the coast, and frequents brackish water and saltwater locations. Mangrove swamps are a typical ecosystem in which this heron exists. The tricolored heron is a year-round resident of the southeastern coast, all of Florida and many parts of the Caribbean and the eastern coast of South America.

Migration South

The inland herons that inhabit northern parts of North America, like the yellow-crowned night heron and green heron, must migrate to southern regions when the freeze occurs. Frozen ponds, streams and river prevent these birds from accessing fish that they depend on for their diet and send other foods such as frogs into hibernation. These herons must go to Southern states like those along the Gulf Coast or make the journey even further south, to Mexico, Central America and even South America.

Nesting Habitat

Herons like this egret usually build a large nest in a tree.

The great blue heron, the snowy egret, the little blue heron, the black-crowned night heron and the cattle egret are among those herons that will nest in colonies. The heron species often intermingle at this time, constructing large nests in trees. The larger herons like the great blue heron make a large platform-like nest of sods, twigs, sticks and grass. Sometimes these heron rookeries are a distance away from a lake or river, although they are usually close by to water.

Camouflage

The American bittern and the least bittern employ an interesting strategy to avoid detection in their habitat. These brown-streaked herons blend in so well against the background of the reeds and aquatic plants of their environment that they are difficult to see. Living along lakeshores and in marshes inland and on the coast, the bittern will resist flying at the first hint of danger, choosing to point its bill upwards and rock back and forth, imitating one of the many grassy reeds nearby. If a threat does close in, the bittern will fly away.

References

• Cornell Lab of Ornithology All About Birds: Bitterns, Herons and Allies
• What Bird: Great Blue Heron
• National Audubon Society Field Guide to Birds; John Bull and John Farrand Jr; 2008