Green-backed Heron
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"Green-backed Heron" is a collective term for certain herons. Small and compact among herons, these birds often feature green plumage – rare among the Ardeidae –, in particular on the back, wings and scapulars.
They were formerly believed to make up a single species Butorides striatus, but are now treated as three largely allopatric species:
- Striated Heron, Butorides striata – Widespread throughout the Old World tropics and in South America (Note that the grammatical gender of the specific name has been corrected from striatus)
- Lava Heron, Butorides sundevalli – Endemic to the Galápagos Islands off Ecuador
- Green Heron, Butorides virescens – Widespread from temperate North America south to Panama
These herons are tool-using animals. They are regularly seen picking up objects to use as a fishing lure, attracting prey fish.[1]
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Striated Heron on the Galápagos Islands
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Lava Heron on the Galápagos Islands
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Footnotes [edit]
- ^ Norris (1975), Boswall (1983), Walsh et al. (1985), Robinson (1994)
References [edit]
- Boswall, J. (1983): Tool-using and related behavior in birds: more notes. Avicultural Magazine 89: 94-108.
- Norris, D. (1975): Green Heron (Butorides virescens) uses feather lure for fishing. American Birds 29: 652-654.
- Robinson, S.K. (1994): Use of bait and lures by Green-backed Herons in Amazonian Peru. Wilson Bulletin 106(3): 569-571
- Walsh, J.F.; Grunewald, J. & Grunewald, B. (1985): Green-backed Herons (Butorides striatus) possibly using a lure and using apparent bait. J. Ornithol. 126: 439-442.
External links [edit]
- Green Heron fishing with lure on YouTube
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