Javanese pond heron

Ayutthaya, Thailand

The Javanese pond heron is common in much of South East Asia.

Habitat

The Javanese pond heron frequents paddyfields, swamps, ponds and riverbanks, but can also be found in mangrove forests and tidal pools. The Javanese pond heron above in breeding plumage was hunting in an overgrown waterway with a variety of exotic water plants.

Feeding

The diet consists of fish, amphibians and insects

Breeding

They breed in marsh and wetlands, nesting in small colonies often with other waders. The nest is a platform of sticks in shrubs or trees with two to five eggs. Both parents incubate and rear the chicks.

Wildfile Extra

• In winter plumage, the Javanese pond heron is virtually indistinguishable from the Chinese and India pond herons.