Ardea melanocephala

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Bibliography

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	AVES	CICONIIFORMES	ARDEIDAE

Scientific Name:

Ardea melanocephala

Species Authority:

Vigors & Children, 1826

Common Name/s:

English	–	Black-headed Heron
French	–	Héron mélanocéphale

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Published:

2009

Assessor/s:

BirdLife International

Reviewer/s:

Bird, J., Butchart, S.

Justification:
This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population trend appears to be increasing, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size is very large, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.

History:

2008	–	Least Concern
2004	–	Least Concern

Geographic Range [top]

Countries:	Native: Angola; Benin; Botswana; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d'Ivoire; Equatorial Guinea; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Gabon; Gambia; Ghana; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Kenya; Lesotho; Liberia; Malawi; Mali; Mauritania; Mozambique; Namibia; Niger; Nigeria; Rwanda; Senegal; Sierra Leone; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Swaziland; Tanzania, United Republic of; Togo; Uganda; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe Vagrant: Egypt; Israel; Jordan; Madagascar; Oman Present - origin uncertain: Djibouti
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Countries:

Native:

Angola; Benin; Botswana; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d'Ivoire; Equatorial Guinea; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Gabon; Gambia; Ghana; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Kenya; Lesotho; Liberia; Malawi; Mali; Mauritania; Mozambique; Namibia; Niger; Nigeria; Rwanda; Senegal; Sierra Leone; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Swaziland; Tanzania, United Republic of; Togo; Uganda; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe

Vagrant:

Egypt; Israel; Jordan; Madagascar; Oman

Present - origin uncertain:

Djibouti

Range Map:

Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	Behaviour Although populations of this species breeding in the equatorial zone of Africa are largely sedentary other populations are partially migratory and move in relation to the timing of the dry seasons¹. The species nests in small mixed-species colonies of up to 200 pairs with breeding activities peaking during the rains¹. The species is usually a solitary forager, but may occasionally congregate into loose feeding flocks^{1, 2} and commonly roosts in groups of tens to hundreds of individuals². Individuals may travel over 30 km daily between preferred feeding grounds and roosting sites¹. Habitat The species inhabits marshes^{1, 3} with reed and papyrus beds^{1, 4}, the margins of rivers and lakes, estuaries¹, coastal creeks³ and flats², temporary pools³ and natural savannas or artificial grasslands² including damp open pastures, moist grassland and cultivated land¹. Diet Its diet consists of terrestrial and aquatic insects¹ (especially Orthoptera), earthworms², crabs¹, Arachnids (e.g. scorpions and spiders)², small mammals (e.g. rats, water voles, musk-shrews² and mice³), lizards, snakes, frogs, birds and fish^{1, 2, 3}. Insects are the most important prey item for the species during the rains, although these become less important as grasslands dry out². Breeding site The nest is a platform of sticks usually positioned high in trees¹ (e.g. eucalyptus, baobab, acacia, fig or palm)⁴ or in reedbeds^{1, 4}, papyrus beds, floating islands of papyrus or on sandstone ledges⁴. The species nests in colonies with up to 35 pairs nesting in one tree⁴. Management information In Cameroon the re-flooding of a desiccated flood-plain twinned with an increase in rainfall and colony protection resulted in a increase in the number of breeding pairs of this species⁶.
Systems:	Terrestrial; Freshwater; Marine

Habitat and Ecology:

Behaviour Although populations of this species breeding in the equatorial zone of Africa are largely sedentary other populations are partially migratory and move in relation to the timing of the dry seasons¹. The species nests in small mixed-species colonies of up to 200 pairs with breeding activities peaking during the rains¹. The species is usually a solitary forager, but may occasionally congregate into loose feeding flocks^{1, 2} and commonly roosts in groups of tens to hundreds of individuals². Individuals may travel over 30 km daily between preferred feeding grounds and roosting sites¹. Habitat The species inhabits marshes^{1, 3} with reed and papyrus beds^{1, 4}, the margins of rivers and lakes, estuaries¹, coastal creeks³ and flats², temporary pools³ and natural savannas or artificial grasslands² including damp open pastures, moist grassland and cultivated land¹. Diet Its diet consists of terrestrial and aquatic insects¹ (especially Orthoptera), earthworms², crabs¹, Arachnids (e.g. scorpions and spiders)², small mammals (e.g. rats, water voles, musk-shrews² and mice³), lizards, snakes, frogs, birds and fish^{1, 2, 3}. Insects are the most important prey item for the species during the rains, although these become less important as grasslands dry out². Breeding site The nest is a platform of sticks usually positioned high in trees¹ (e.g. eucalyptus, baobab, acacia, fig or palm)⁴ or in reedbeds^{1, 4}, papyrus beds, floating islands of papyrus or on sandstone ledges⁴. The species nests in colonies with up to 35 pairs nesting in one tree⁴. Management information In Cameroon the re-flooding of a desiccated flood-plain twinned with an increase in rainfall and colony protection resulted in a increase in the number of breeding pairs of this species⁶.

Systems:

Terrestrial; Freshwater; Marine

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	Utilisation The species is hunted and traded at traditional medicine markets in Nigeria⁵.

Major Threat(s):

Utilisation The species is hunted and traded at traditional medicine markets in Nigeria⁵.

Bibliography [top]

	Brown, L. H.; Urban, E. K.; Newman, K. 1982. The birds of Africa vol I. Academic Press, London. del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A.; Sargatal, J. 1992. Handbook of the Birds of the World, vol. 1: Ostrich to Ducks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain. Hancock, J.; Kushlan, J. 1984. The herons handbook. Croom Helm, London. Kushlan, J. A.; Hancock, J. A. 2005. The herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. Nikolaus, G. 2001. Bird exploitation for traditional medicine in Nigeria. Malimbus 23: 45-55. Scholte, P. 2006. Waterbird recovery in Waza-Logone (Cameroon), resulting from increased rainfall, floodplain rehabilitation and colony protection. Ardea 94(1): 109-125.

Brown, L. H.; Urban, E. K.; Newman, K. 1982. The birds of Africa vol I. Academic Press, London.

del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A.; Sargatal, J. 1992. Handbook of the Birds of the World, vol. 1: Ostrich to Ducks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain.

Hancock, J.; Kushlan, J. 1984. The herons handbook. Croom Helm, London.

Kushlan, J. A.; Hancock, J. A. 2005. The herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K.

Nikolaus, G. 2001. Bird exploitation for traditional medicine in Nigeria. Malimbus 23: 45-55.

Scholte, P. 2006. Waterbird recovery in Waza-Logone (Cameroon), resulting from increased rainfall, floodplain rehabilitation and colony protection. Ardea 94(1): 109-125.

Citation:	BirdLife International 2009. Ardea melanocephala. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 22 May 2012.
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