Places and times seen in Munakata city

Summer bird at Munakata. From late April to around October, you can see it in paddy fields, rivers, wetlands, lakes and so on throughout Munakata city.

Characteristic

Total length 50 cm. Same color of both sexes.
When the summer wings come from the head to the chest, the back becomes orange.
When it comes to winter feathers it turns into almost whole body white feathers. The beak is yellow all the year round. It is the smallest in Shirasagi and has a cute shape.
When it comes to winter feathers, it is somewhat difficult to distinguish it from other herons, but summer wings have orange color clearly and do not get mistaken. Unlike other herons, they often act in groups, and it is understood that Amazagi is a group of orange-colored herons in the distance.

Habit

Predate frogs and grasshoppers on agricultural lands and riverbeds. Colonize nests (colonize) with other other herons. Currently, there is no colony at Munakata, and flying from the surrounding area can be seen from spring to autumn.

distribution

It is a southern heron, distributed all over the world from temperate to tropical. In Japan, it fly as summer birds south of Honshu.

Other

It is common to see food that feeds after the tractor, such as raising a rice field.
In the south, symbiotic relationship with buffalo and cattle is well known. In Japan, you can see examples of it in Iriomote Island etc.