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The western reef heron (Egretta gularis) also called the western reef egret, is a medium-sized heron found in southern Europe, Africa and parts of Asia. It has a mainly coastal distribution and occurs in several plumage forms: a slaty-grey plumage in which it can only be confused with the rather uncommon dark morph of the Little Egret (Egretta garzetta); a white form which can look very similar to the little egret although the bill tends to be paler and larger and the black form with white throat E. g. gularis of West Africa. There are also differences in size, structure and foraging behaviour. There have been suggestions that the species hybridizes with the Little Egret, and based on this, some authors treat schistacea and gularis as subspecies of Egretta garzetta. Works that consider the Western Reef Heron as a valid species include the nominate gularis and schistacea as subspecies.
Scientific Name : Egretta Gularis
Family : Ardeidae
Order : Pelecaniformes
Class : Aves
Type : Bitterns, Herons And Egrets
Conservation Status : Least concern (LC)
Size : 55 - 67 cm
Compare Size : Kite
Wingspan : 450 g
Weight : 90 -110 cm
Migratory : Resident
Sex Alike : Yes
Nesting Season : April to August
Other Names :
English : Western Reef Heron
Hindi : काला बगला
Marathi : सागरी बगळा
Habitat:
Costs, Mangroves
Breeding:
Eggs 3 Or 4, Pale sea-green or blue-green, unmarked.
Feeding:
Crustaceans, and Molluscs
| Male & Female | |
|---|---|
| Bill | thick, heavy bill |
| Throat | variably white in upper half |
| Lores | in Breeding plumage reddish |
| Nape | In Breeding pluage has plumes on sides of nape |
| Breast | In Breeding pluage has plumes |
| Back | In Breeding pluage has plumes |
| Chin | white |
| Note : plumage may be all-white or dark-grey can also occur with intermediate shades of grey. white morph similar to the little egret but in Western Reef Egrets bill tends to be paler and larger |
|
| Date | Location |
|---|---|
| 12 Jan 2019 | Bird Watching Area, Bhandup West, Mumbai, Maharashtra |
