heron, any of about 60 species of long-legged wading birds, classified in the family Ardeidae (order Ciconiiformes) and generally including several species usually called egrets. The Ardeidae also include the bitterns (subfamily Botaurinae). Herons are widely distributed over the world but are most common in the tropics. They usually feed while wading quietly in the shallow waters of pools, marshes, and swamps, catching frogs, fishes, and other aquatic animals. They nest in rough platforms of sticks constructed in bushes or trees near water; the nests usually are grouped in colonies called heronries.
Herons commonly stand with the neck bent in an S shape. They fly with the legs trailing loosely and the head held back against the body, instead of stretching the neck out in front as most birds do. They have broad wings, long straight sharp-pointed bills, and powder downs; the latter are areas of feathers that continually disintegrate to a fine powder which is used for preening (absorbing and removing fish oil, scum, and slime from the plumage).
Herons are subdivided into typical herons, night herons, and tiger herons. Typical herons feed during the day. In breeding season some develop showy plumes on the back and participate in elaborate mutual-courtship posturing. Best known of the typical herons are the very large, long-legged and long-necked, plain-hued, crested members of the genus Ardea—especially the 130-cm (50-inch) great blue heron (A. herodias) of North America, with a wingspan of 1.8 metres (6 feet) or more, and the similar but slightly smaller gray, or common, heron (A. cinerea), widespread in the Old World. Largest of all is the goliath heron (A. goliath) of Africa, a 150-cm (59-inch) bird with a reddish head and neck. The purple heron (A. purpurea) is a darker and smaller Old World form.
The typical herons also include the black heron, Hydranassa (or Melanophoyx) ardesiaca, of Africa, and several species of the genus Egretta (egrets), such as the tricoloured heron (E. tricolor), of the southeastern United States and Central and South America, and the little blue heron (E. caerulea). The green heron (Butorides virescens), a small green and brown bird widespread in North America, is notable for its habit of dropping bait on the surface of the water in order to attract fish.
Night herons have thicker bills and shorter legs and are more active in the twilight hours and at night. The black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) ranges over the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia; the Nankeen night heron (N. caledonicus) in Australia, New Caledonia, and the Philippines; and the yellow-crowned night heron (Nyctanassa violacea) from the eastern and central United States to southern Brazil. Another night heron is the boat-billed heron, or boatbill (Cochlearius cochlearius), of Central and South America, placed by some authorities in its own family (Cochleariidae).
The most primitive herons are the six species of tiger herons (formerly called tiger bitterns), shy, solitary birds with cryptic, often barred, plumage. The lined, or banded, tiger heron (Tigrisoma lineatum), 75 cm (30 inches) long, of central and northern South America, is a well-known example. Another is the Mexican, or bare-throated, tiger heron (T. mexicanum) of Mexico and Central America.