New Zealand Native Animals > White Faced Heron

White Faced Heron

Ardea novaehollandiae

NATIVE; COMMON; RESIDENT

DISTRIBUTION: A widespread species from eastern Indonesia, south throughout Australia and eastward to the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, New Caledonia and New Zealand.

HABITAT: Particularly successful in New Zealand due to its ability to inhabit almost any wetland environment; from road side ditches to the margins of lakes and even marine environments.

BREEDING: The breeding season varies widely with locality but mainly peaks from October to December. 3-5 eggs are laid in a nest which is comprised of an untidy pile of sticks, typically in a small isolated grove of tall trees. Incubation takes 24-25 days and both parents share the role. Chicks fledge at 38-42 days.

FOOD: The bulk of the herons food intake is of aquatic insects and their larvae, also tadpoles, frogs, mollusks, fresh water crayfish (koura), frogs, small reptiles and occasionally small fish.

VOICE: In flight, a gutteral “grr-aw” repeated at short intervals.

GENERAL: The most abundant heron in New Zealand. The white faced heron usually forages alone, sometimes defending quite distinct territories, however in winter it will often feed and roost communally.


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