A heronry, sometimes called a heron

rookery A rookery is a colony of breeding animals, generally gregarious birds. Coming from the nesting habits of rooks, the term is used for corvids and the breeding grounds of colony-forming seabirds, marine mammals (true seals and sea lions), and ev ...

, is a breeding ground for

heron The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...

Notable heronries

Although their breeding territories are often on more protected small islands in lakes or retention ponds, herons breed in heronries (or also called rookeries, especially since other birds join them like spoonbills, storks, and cormorants). Some of the notable heronries are:

Asia

* Kaggaladu Heronry is in

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

state of

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. This heronry, in the

Tumkur district Tumakuru District is an administrative district in the state of Karnataka in India. It is the third largest district in Karnataka by land area with an area of 10,598 km2, and fourth largest by Population. It is a one-and-a-half-hour drive from ...

, was first made known to the outside world in 1999 by members of the

Tumkur Tumkur, officially renamed as Tumakuru, is a city located in the southern part of Indian state of Karnataka. Tumkur is situated at a distance of northwest of Bangalore, the state capital along NH 48 and NH 73. It is the headquarters of the ...

-based

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

Wildlife Aware Nature Club.IndiaBirds.com - HotSpots

Europe

Cleeve Heronry Cleeve Heronry () is a heronry in a woodland near the village of Cleeve in North Somerset. 40 nests were counted in 1994. 47 nests in 2007. CCTV from one of the nests can be viewed at Cleeve Nursery in spring while the birds are raising chicks. A ...

(), in a woodland near the village of Cleeve in

North Somerset North Somerset is a unitary authorities of England, unitary district in Somerset, South West England. Whilst its area covers part of the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Somerset, it is administered independently of the non ...

, UK. *

Hilgay Heronry Hilgay Heronry is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest south of Downham Market in Norfolk. This small wood has a nationally important breeding colony of grey herons, with around forty nests each year in larch and ash trees. Nearby d ...

() is in

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

. It is situated in a small copse on the edge of

The Fens The Fens, also known as the , in eastern England are a naturally marshy region supporting a rich ecology and numerous species. Most of the fens were drained centuries ago, resulting in a flat, dry, low-lying agricultural region supported by a ...

in the UK. An average of c. 40 pairs of

grey heron The grey heron (''Ardea cinerea'') is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more northern ...

nests each year at this site, in

ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

''(Fraxinus excelsior)'' and

European larch ''Larix decidua'', the European larch, is a species of larch native to the mountains of central Europe, in the Alps and Carpathian Mountains as well as the Pyrenees, with disjunct lowland populations in northern Poland and southern Lithuania. It ...

''(Larix decidua)'' trees.

North America

* The Florida Everglades in south Florida, of the United States. Thousands of birds, including herons, egrets, spoonbills, and storks, nest in

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evoluti ...

s (genus ''Rhizophora'').

References

External links