| Indian Pond Heron | |
|---|---|
 breeding plumage | |
 nonbreeding plumage | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Pelecaniformes |
| Family: | Ardeidae |
| Genus: | Ardeola |
| Species: | Ardeola grayii |
The Indian Pond Heron or Paddybird (Ardeola grayii) is a small heron mostly native to the Indian Subcontinent.
Description[]
The Indian Pond Heron is a small, stocky heron with a maximum length of 45 cm. In wintering plumage, the back is dark brown, which can confuse the bird's appearance with the Squacco Heron. Thanks to the underside of the white wings, the bird looks lighter in flight. The underside of the body, despite the striped chest, is also white. In the breeding plumage, the back is chestnut.
Behavior[]
Feeding[]
These herons mainly forage in marshy wetlands and usually feed at the edge of ponds but extensively use floating vegetation such as water hyacinth to enter deeper water. They may also on occasion swim on water or fish from the air and land in deeper waters. They have also been observed to fly and capture fishes leaping out of water. Sometimes, they fly low over water to drive frogs and fishes towards the shore before settling along the shoreline. They have been noted to pick up crumbs of bread and drop them on the water surface as a use of bait for fish. Food primarily consumed include crustaceans, aquatic insects, fishes, tadpoles and sometimes leeches. Insects, fish and frogs are also eaten outside wetlands.
Breeding and Nesting[]
It breeds twice a year, namely with the onset of monsoons from May to September and from November to January. It nests in small colonies, often together with other species of herons. Most nests are built at a height of about 9 to 10 m in large leafy trees. The male collects the nest material while the female builds the nest. The female lays 3 to 5 greenish-blue eggs hatching asynchronously and taking 18-24 days to hatch. Fish are mainly fed to young. If undisturbed, nest sites may be reused year after year.
Distribution and Habitat[]
The Indian Pond Heron inhabits the reed-covered waterways, mangroves and swamps of southern Asia. The area of distribution stretches from the south of Iran through India and Sri Lanka to Bangladesh. The Indian Pond Heron also occurs in a small part of the Arabian peninsula, specifically in northern UAE and Oman, where it may coexist with the similar, commoner, lighter-backed Squacco Heron. The subspecies Ardeola grayii phillipsi also lives in the Maldives. It is also found in villages and landfills, feeding on the garbage deposited there.
In Culture[]
The Indian Pond Heron's habit of standing still and flushing only at the last moment lead to the widespread folk beliefs that they are semi-blind and their name in many languages hints toward this belief. In Sri Lanka, this bird is called kana koka which translates to "half-blind heron" in the Sinhala language. This heron also has a role in a story of the Hitopadesha where it takes injury to itself to save a king. The bird's surprising transformation of colors is acknowledged by Anglo-Indian naturalist-writers. The bird is said to have been eaten in India in former times.
During the height of the feather trade, the plumes of the "paddy bird" were collected and exported to Britain.
Works Cited[]
"Indian pond heron." Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Jan. 2001,
en.wikipedia.org/. Accessed 2 Aug. 2022.