Cocoi heron
| Cocoi heron | |
|---|---|
_Pantanal.JPG) | |
| in the Pantanal, Brazil | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Pelecaniformes |
| Family: | Ardeidae |
| Genus: | Ardea |
| Species: | A. cocoi |
| Binomial name | |
| Ardea cocoi Linnaeus, 1766 | |
The cocoi heron (Ardea cocoi) is a species of heron in the family Ardeidae. It is common and widespread throughout most of South America including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela. It is a non-breeding visitor to Trinidad and Tobago and a vagrant to the Falkland Islands and Tristan da Cunha. Its natural habitats are rivers, swamps, and freshwater lakes.
Description
A large heron, the cocoi can measure 95–127 cm (37–50 in) in length, stand up to 100–130 cm (39–51 in) in height and weigh 1.14–3.2 kg (2.5–7.1 lb).[2][3] Its markings are not dissimilar to a grey heron's, but it is darker with a longer neck and crest. It has a bright orange beak and dull orange legs, and whilst perched holds its neck in an S shape characteristic of all herons. In flight, it is slow and graceful but appears scrawny due to its neck and large wings. The cocoi heron is extremely similar to its North American and European counterparts, the great blue heron and grey heron, with which the cocoi heron forms a superspecies.
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ardea cocoi. |
- ↑ BirdLife International (2012). "Ardea cocoi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ↑ CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (1992), ISBN 978-0-8493-4258-5.
- ↑ CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses, 2nd Edition by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (2008), ISBN 978-1-4200-6444-5.