Japanese Night Heron
Gorsachius goisagi
A small brown heron with awkward-looking, hunched appearance. Occurs in dense, damp lowland and foothill forests next to bodies of water, where it hunts prey in dense cover. Paler crown and weaker crest than similar Malayan Night-Heron and lacks the white wingtips of that species. Shy and difficult to see; most readily observed during migration, when it sometimes visits more open habitats. Gives hooting calls at regular intervals, especially in early evening.
Identification
The Japanese night heron (Gorsachius goisagi) is a species of night heron found in East Asia. It breeds in Japan, and winters in the Philippines and Indonesia. It is also seen in the spring and summer in Korea and the Russian Far East. The Japanese night heron prefers dense, damp forest, in both its breeding and winter ranges. Common until the 1970s, this species is threatened by deforestation in its summer and winter ranges for timber and farmland. Other documented threats include the introduction of the Siberian weasel (Mustela sibirica) in its breeding range and nest predation by crows, due to the increasing crow populations. The current population is estimated at less than 1,000 mature individuals. Accordingly, the Japanese night heron is marked as a protected species in Japan and Hong Kong. Future actions proposed to conserve this species include surveying its breeding habits throughout Japan and the Philippines, protecting its habitat, creating more public interest and awareness in the bird, and stopping invasive species from competing with it.
Taxonomy
Genus: Gorsachius; Family: Ardeidae; Order: Pelecaniformes.
- Scientific name
- Gorsachius goisagi
- Authority
- (Temminck, 1836)
- Order
- Pelecaniformes
- Family
- Ardeidae
- Genus
- Gorsachius
Range and habitat
The Japanese night heron typically inhabits dense, coniferous and broad-leaved forests on hills and low mountains in close proximity to bodies of water, i.e. rivers and streams. This habitat seems to be consistent between the breeding and non-breeding ranges. Generally, the altitudinal range of the Japanese night heron is between 50 and 240 meters. However, it has been reported at heights above 1,000 meters in Japan, where the habitat is scarce, and the Philippines. During the winter, the heron shelters in dark and deeply shaded forests, which are near water and can be as elevated as 2,400 meters.
- Breeding range
- PAL : Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu (c, s Japan), Jeju (off s Korean Pen.) and Taiwan
- Non-breeding range
- Ryukyu Is. (s Japan) to Philippines
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
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