Order CICONIIFORMES | Family ARDEIDAE |
Ardea cinerea Linnaeus, 1758 Grey Heron Races:
Ardea cinerea rectirostris Gould, 1843
Common, in places abundant breeding migrant. Inhabits reservoirs with reed-beds, trees and bushes in shallow water. Arrives very early, when reservoirs are covered with ice and much snow. Appears end February – March in the south and in mid – end April in the northern areas. Migrates singly and in small flocks, which rarely consist of up to 50 individuals. Nests in singly pairs and in colonies up to 200-300 nests, usually together with Cormorant and other Ardeidae. Bulky nests are built by both partners in trees, bushes (Russian Olive, Asiatic Poplar, Willow) from dry twigs, lined with some grass at 6-10 m above ground, or in reed-beds from dry reed stems and leaves at 0.2-0.8 m above water early April – early May. Clutches of 2-6, usually 4-5 eggs early April – early June. Both parents incubate 26-27 days and feed juveniles, which hatch at early May – early June, and flying at end May – end July. Autumn migration begins end August – early September and in northern areas comes to an end at early – mid-October. In southern Kazakhstan migration takes place up to early – mid-November.
Occupies reservoirs throughout plain Kazakhstan, in small numbers it winters to the south of Turkestan and Chimkent, 5 birds recorded on Sorbulak lake 15 December 2002. On dispersal and migration it occasionally visits mountain lakes.
Gavrilov E. I., Gavrilov A. E. "The Birds of Kazakhstan". Almaty, 2005
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