Nankeen Night Heron
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[Photo] A pair of Nankeen Night Herons at the Melbourne Zoo. By Mehmet Karatay

The Nankeen Night Heron, Nycticorax caledonicus also commonly referred to as the Rufous Night Heron, and in Melanesia as Melabaob, is a medium-sized heron. It is found throughout much of Australia except the arid inland, Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Melanesia.

The Nankeen Night Heron stands about 60cm tall. It is not strictly nocturnal. It often feeds during the day, especially during wet weather. The bird is dependent on a diet of small fish, reptiles, insects and sometimes eggs. It can be seen around freshwater rivers, lakes, bulrushes, estuaries, harbors and in residential fishponds for goldfish.

Size: 56 - 66cm

Voice: Loud "K-oark", deep-throated rumbling at roost.

Nesting: Primarily breeds September - April. A nest platform is built of sticks in a high tree near water, in communal groups.

Eggs: 2-5 light green. Incubation 22 days. Fledge 42-49 days.

Widespread throughout its large range, the Nankeen Night Heron is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nankeen_Night_Heron

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