- Where to see one
- 4 U.S. zoos in our directory hold yellow-crowned night heron, confirmed against each zoo's own animal list.
Conservation status
Not Evaluated
This species has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List, so it sits outside the threat scale entirely.
About the yellow-crowned night heron
The yellow-crowned night heron is a stocky heron restricted to the Americas, found from the southern and eastern United States through Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean to Peru and Brazil, including the Galapagos. It lives in marshes, wooded swamps, mangroves and coastal thickets, and its range follows that of the crustaceans that make up most of its diet. Crabs and crayfish are the main prey, along with insects, fish, worms, molluscs and lizards. It stalks or waits for prey, then lunges with its bill, and coughs up crab shells in pellets. It may feed day or night but prefers night when feeding its young.
Yellow-crowned Night Heron facts
- Its breeding season is timed to the spring emergence of crabs, and in some tropical places it breeds all year.
- It was introduced to Bermuda in the late 1970s to control land crabs.
- Bill shape varies by region, depending on the size of the crustaceans it eats.
- Between 1925 and 1960 it spread northward for reasons that are still unclear.
Where to see yellow-crowned night heron in the U.S.
4 zoos across 4 states
Find the closest one
Rank the 4 zoos holding yellow-crowned night heron by how far they are from you. Your location is used in your browser to sort this list and is never sent to us.
Missouri· 1
New York· 1
Oklahoma· 1
Texas· 1
AZAThe Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Accredited members have passed an independent inspection of animal care and welfare, safety, conservation and education, repeated every five years. Many smaller facilities never apply, so “not accredited” isn't a verdict on its own. What accreditation means · How we check this
Built from each zoo's own published animal list.
