|
Spotlight on Diversity
Bitterns,
Egrets & Herons
Of the 12
species of herons and egrets observed in California, Kern County is home to
8 species and has been visited by one southeastern vagrant. Kern County is unusual
in being the year round home to so many species in the family Ardeidae.
When
San Joaquin Valley recharge basins and projects allow native vegetation
to grow, many species benefit.
Herons,
bitterns, and egrets are almost always found near water in the valleys
and deserts of the county. They are found along freshwater lakes and
marshes and seacoasts. Most nest in trees, brush or tules near water,
although some rookeries can be found away from water.
Taxonomic
Classification
Kingdom: Metazoa (=Animalia)
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves (birds)
Order: Ciconiiformes (herons, egrets, storks, ibises, spoonbills)
Family: Ardeidae (herons)
American
Bittern - Botaurus lentiginosus
An uncommon resident in the San Joaquin Valley, Kern Valley and Mojave
Desert. Prefers cattail / tule marshes. Expected to breed at Kern
National Wildlife Refuge and in the Kern Valley but unconfirmed.
Least Bittern
- Ixobrychus exilis
Formerly bred in the Kern Valley but no recent records. Extremely
shy and very rarely seen. Prefers cattail / tule marshes in the
valleys, few records for the Kern desert but there are breeding
records to the north in Inyo County.
Great Blue Heron
- Ardea herodias
A breeding resident throughout the county. Great Blue Herons nest in
trees in communal rookeries. Relatively common in
appropriate habitat year round.
Great Egret - Ardea alba
Breeding is not confirmed but suspected at the City of Bakersfield
2800-acre recharge basin. Common along the Kern River especially in
winter and spring.
Snowy Egret - Egretta thula
A rare breeder in the San Joaquin Valley. Frequents open
cottonwood/willow forests, and cattail / tule marshes. Fairly common
in the Tulare and Kern River Basins. Uncommon to rare in the Kern
Valley and the desert.
Little Blue Heron
- Egretta caerulea
Only observed 3X in county at Edwards Air Force Base and California
City
Cattle Egret - Bubulcus ibis
A breeding resident in the San Joaquin Valley. Prefers rather stinky
places like sewer ponds and feedlots. Very common at landfills and
sewer ponds in the Bakersfield area. Less common to rare in rest of
the county.
Green Heron - Butorides virescens
A breeding resident in the San Joaquin Valley, Kern Valley and Mojave
Desert. Prefers the edges and underbrush along streams and in marshes.
A shy and inconspicuous bird that is uncommon in appropriate habitat
in the valleys, and rare in the desert.
Black-crowned Night-Heron
- Nycticorax nycticorax
A breeding resident in the San Joaquin Valley, Kern Valley and Mojave
Desert. Prefers cattail / tule marshes. Relatively abundant to common
in appropriate habitat in the valleys, less common to rare in the
desert.
For more information on some of our
herons, please visit sample pages to a Field Guide to the Birds of
Kern County:
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Great Egret
Great Blue Heron
Green Heron
|
