Brown heron. Gray heron: a description of what it eats, where it lives and interesting facts. Enemies, adverse factors
The red heron is the brightest representative of the heron family. Although the plumage of the red heron is bright, it blends beautifully with the reeds and shrubs in which it lives.
The name of the heron was due to the red-brown elongated feathers on the chest and belly, and light red stripes on the neck and crop. But the English name "Purple Heron" and the Latin name "Ardea purpurea" translates to "purple heron".
Description of the red heron
Red herons are quite large - about 78-90 centimeters, and they reach a height of 94 centimeters. The wingspan is 120-152 centimeters.
But these birds are slender, with rather large sizes, they have a small weight - 0.5-1.4 kilograms. In size, they are slightly smaller than gray herons.
As noted, the plumage on the back, sides and tail is gray-blue, and on the chest and belly it is light red. During sunset, these herons really look red. Juveniles are almost completely red-brown.
Types of red herons
Ardea purpurea magadascariensis live in Madagascar;
Ardea purpurea purpurea build nests in Europe up to the Netherlands, in Africa and Asia up to Kazakhstan;
Ardea purpurea manilensis lives in Asia as far as the Philippines;
Ardea purpurea bournei, this subspecies is sometimes isolated as a separate species of Ardea bournei.
Lifestyle of red herons
These birds are marsh. They live in Europe, Africa and Asia. European red herons migrate to Africa for the winter, and individuals living in Asia fly to its more southern regions in winter.
Red herons live in colonies. They settle among thickets of bushes and reeds near swamps and lakes. They prefer hard-to-reach places and rarely leave the thickets; among them herons feel safe due to their protective coloration.
If a bird or chick is frightened, they take a characteristic pose, raising their beak to the sky. These shy birds in open water do not allow anyone to approach them, noticing a person even at a great distance, they immediately take off.
The flight of red herons is beautiful, during the flight in adults the neck has an S-shaped bend. They sit on trees much less frequently than other herons.
Red heron diet
Red herons forage for food in shallow water. They prey on small fish, snakes, frogs and insects. Rats, mice and other small mammals can also become their prey.
Red herons do not pursue their victims, but get deep enough into the water, freeze in one place, and wait for hours for prey to appear, while they do not change their position at all. Herons hunt at dusk, and the search for prey continues until early morning. They search for prey one by one.
They are even able to cope with a large snake. And on their large paws with clawed fingers, they move well through the water, stepping over aquatic plants.
Reproduction of red herons
During the mating season, the color of the red herons becomes much brighter, in addition to this, their chest feathers become even longer. During courtship, herons fluff up their feathers on their necks with beautiful gestures.
Herons build large nests in their nests. To do this, they use large stems and leaves. They make nests in reed heaps, in mangroves, in dense fern bushes, and sometimes in small thorny bushes, in rare cases they build nests in trees. The nest of the red heron is cone-shaped, but when the chicks appear, it eventually becomes flat.
In the laying of the red heron, there are 3-5 eggs, but sometimes their number reaches 8 pieces. The color of the eggs is greenish-blue. Both parents take part in building the nest, incubating and feeding the chicks. They feed the babies with regurgitated food, while regurgitating it not into the beaks of the chicks, but directly into the nest.
Young chicks leave the nest at 6 weeks old. When flying, juvenile herons do not fold their necks into an "S" like adults do, but stretch it forward.
All herons are remembered by people for their ability to stand on one leg in search of food or just resting. These beautiful representatives of the heron family have gained recognition for a long time, so today we are considering the red heron. It is distinguished by its shade of plumage, as the name implies. Despite the fact that the bird is red in color with brownish patches, if you translate its name from other languages, then literally it sounds like a purple heron.
View features
The heron is found on wet flooded plains, near rivers, lakes, reservoirs. When the nesting period begins, a dwelling for future offspring is built on the basis of twigs. It is located on trees. Birds prefer to stay not in large flocks, but in small groups.
A feature of birds is that they do not stray in heaps. Individuals prefer to be located at a certain distance. When they nest, they occupy a large territory. Each group keeps 1-3 km. from the previous one.
If there are too many birds, they go together in search of a suitable place to build nests. There must be plenty of food in this area. If there is no food, the older generation goes to get it.
Generally speaking, without affecting individual members of the family, herons live in swampy areas. Depending on the period of the year, the swamp can be selected with fresh or brackish water. In winter, salty springs are usually preferred, and in summer fresh water.
Description and habitation
These representatives of the family are quite large in their overall features. In height, their indicators reach 93 cm, and in size in general - 78-90 cm. The wingspan varies in the range of 120-150 cm.Birds are slender and elongated in their physique. But, despite this, they are in the weight category 500-1400 gr. Agree, for a large-sized bird these are small indicators. If we compare the red-haired representatives of the family with their gray counterparts, the latter are slightly larger.
The lateral parts, back, tail have a grayish plumage with a blue tone. On the chest and in the abdominal part, the feathers are red with a brownish undertone. When the birds are standing at sunset, they look bright red. But the young are not famous for such plumage, it is rather brown with red patches.
It makes sense to touch on the number of these individuals. They live in Asia and Europe. They settle preferably not in the forest, in open places. But areas with trees can also be found in smaller numbers.
You can meet these birds on the Caspian, Black, Aral Sea. Herons were also seen in the Leningrad region. There are a lot of these individuals in the vastness of our homeland.
Nutrition
Individuals of the presented species get their food in the shallows. They prefer to eat small fish, frogs, snakes, and insects. Also used are mice and rats, small mammals.
An interesting feature is the process of hunting itself. These birds do not pursue victims, they prefer to wait. They go deep into the water space, draw in one leg and stand motionless. It can take many hours before the bird eats.
Hunting time is in the evening or early morning. Herons do not stand in flocks, waiting for a meal. They disperse to different parts, preferring to get food alone. This is the effectiveness of this method of feeding.
The birds are so fast and strong that they can easily overcome large reptiles. Sharp claws, as well as long legs, allow these individuals to step over vegetation, following their goal.
reproduction
- As soon as the mating season begins in individuals, the color intensifies significantly in birds. In addition, long feathers located on the chest begin to stand out strongly in herons. When the courtship period begins, the birds fluff up their neck feathers and show beautiful gestures.
- Also during the mating season, herons begin to build nests. However, they turn out to be quite impressive in size. They use large leaves and large stems as building material. Often, nest building occurs in dense reeds.
- Alternatively, dense fern bushes and mangroves are used for this purpose. With rare exceptions, birds make their homes in trees and thorny bushes. The nest of the considered individuals has a conical shape. Over time, due to the chicks, it becomes flat.
- At one time, the female is able to bring up to 5 eggs. In rare cases, the quantity can reach up to 9 pcs. Eggs often have a bluish color with greenery. At the same time, the couple is engaged in building a nest, incubating offspring and feeding together. Adults feed chicks with regurgitated products.
- Only parents do not regurgitate food directly into the beak of the chicks. Adult individuals do this directly to the nest. As soon as the young are about 1.5 months old, they fly off the nest. Young herons stretch their neck forward, unlike adults, in which it is presented in the form of the letter "S".
- Presented herons do not tend to move far from the nest. Such individuals continue to defend their area from relatives. At the same time, herons can take quite formidable poses. Individuals make strange puffing sounds, ruffling their feathers. The chicks also try to defend their territory, they often and briefly cry.
Worldwide, there are officially more than 60 species of individuals represented. The smallest herons can grow up to only 50 cm. Large representatives of this species are up to 1.5 meters tall.
These birds live in different parts of the globe, with the exception of Antarctica and the polar regions. Individuals of the presented family live in brackish and fresh springs, as well as in swampy areas and in reed beds.
Birds on the nest
The red heron is the brightest representative of the heron family. Although the plumage of the red heron is bright, it blends beautifully with the reeds and shrubs in which it lives.
The name of the heron was due to the red-brown elongated feathers on the chest and belly, and light red stripes on the neck and crop. But the English name "Purple Heron" and the Latin name "Ardea purpurea" translates to "purple heron".
Description of the red heron
Red herons are quite large - about 78-90 centimeters, and they reach a height of 94 centimeters. The wingspan is 120-152 centimeters.
As noted, the plumage on the back, sides and tail is gray-blue, and on the chest and belly it is light red. During sunset, these herons really look red. Juveniles are almost completely red-brown.
Types of red herons
Ardea purpurea magadascariensis live in Madagascar;
Ardea purpurea purpurea build nests in Europe up to the Netherlands, in Africa and Asia up to Kazakhstan;
Ardea purpurea manilensis lives in Asia as far as the Philippines;
Ardea purpurea bournei, this subspecies is sometimes isolated as a separate species of Ardea bournei.
Lifestyle of red herons
These birds are marsh. They live in Europe, Africa and Asia. European red herons migrate to Africa for the winter, and individuals living in Asia fly to its more southern regions in winter.
If a bird or chick is frightened, they take a characteristic pose, raising their beak to the sky. These shy birds in open water do not allow anyone to approach them, noticing a person even at a great distance, they immediately take off.
The flight of red herons is beautiful, during the flight in adults the neck has an S-shaped bend. They sit on trees much less frequently than other herons.
Red heron diet
Red herons forage for food in shallow water. They prey on small fish, snakes, frogs and insects. Rats, mice and other small mammals can also become their prey.
Red herons do not pursue their victims, but get deep enough into the water, freeze in one place, and wait for hours for prey to appear, while they do not change their position at all. Herons hunt at dusk, and the search for prey continues until early morning. They search for prey one by one.
They are even able to cope with a large snake. And on their large paws with clawed fingers, they move well through the water, stepping over aquatic plants.
Reproduction of red herons
During the mating season, the color of the red herons becomes much brighter, in addition to this, their chest feathers become even longer. During courtship, herons fluff up their feathers on their necks with beautiful gestures.
Herons build large nests in their nests. To do this, they use large stems and leaves. They make nests in reed heaps, in mangroves, in dense fern bushes, and sometimes in small thorny bushes, in rare cases they build nests in trees. The nest of the red heron is cone-shaped, but when the chicks appear, it eventually becomes flat.
In the laying of the red heron, there are 3-5 eggs, but sometimes their number reaches 8 pieces. The color of the eggs is greenish-blue. Both parents take part in building the nest, incubating and feeding the chicks. They feed the babies with regurgitated food, while regurgitating it not into the beaks of the chicks, but directly into the nest.
Young chicks leave the nest at 6 weeks old. When flying, juvenile herons do not fold their necks into an "S" like adults do, but stretch it forward.
Red herons do not move far from the nest, they protect their feeding area from other pairs, while they take formidable poses, ruffle their plumage and make puffing sounds. The chicks call shortly and often, and adults loudly “croak”, their sounds resemble “crack-crack”.
The number of red herons
In the European and Asian part, in a treeless strip, red herons are usually a nesting species, but in the forests their numbers are much lower. They are quite common in the Black, Aral and Caspian Seas. But in the Leningrad lowland they can be seen much less frequently. In general, red herons are quite numerous in our country.
From which, however, already from a distance it differs in smaller size and dark red or even chestnut plumage. She is less wary than the gray heron. Hunting for fish in the reeds, it lets a boat and a person close to itself, and then rises steeply with heavy swings upwards, having risen, it flies like a gray heron. In open places, the red heron behaves more strictly and flies away, noticing a person from afar. Less caution, perhaps, is associated with a twilight and even nocturnal lifestyle, as well as with the color of the bird. Among last year's brown reed and reed thickets, it is less noticeable than the gray heron. A wounded bird, falling into the thickets, stretching its head and neck up, assumes a motionless pose, as do spinning tops and bitterns, as do the chicks of red herons on nests. Unlike the gray heron, the red heron rarely perches on trees and prefers to hide in thickets. The voice of this species has much in common with the voice of the gray heron, but is less loud. Chicks make frequent short sounds, which are extremely difficult to convey in words.
Area. Europe - France, except for northern and eastern; Iberian Peninsula - Spain, Portugal; Holland, Italy, Austria (Lake Neusiedler), Hungary, the Balkans (in Greece only in Thessaly), the island of Mallorca; the southern strip of the European part of the USSR, from about 52 ° N. sh. to the Crimea and Transcaucasia.
Africa, except for the Sahara - Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and sporadically in the tropical and southern parts of the continent; Madagascar.
Asia - from Asia Minor, Mesopotamia, Central Asia, Iran, India, Burma, Ceylon to Primorye, northeast China, Manchuria, Japan, Rio Kiu, Formosa, Philippine Islands, Celebes, B. Sunda Islands. The wintering area of northern populations is from southern Europe, Central Asia, in the steppe regions of western, eastern and southern Africa, in China from Sichuan to Guangdong.
Subspecies and varying characters. Differences - in size and color, as well as details of biology (nature of stay, details of the reproductive cycle - in general, but similar, etc.). Three subspecies.
The nature of the stay. For most of our country - a nesting, migratory bird.
Some individuals winter near Lankaran, but in colder winters they migrate to the south. For many parts of the Union, the red heron is a migrant or only a migrant. Arrival is early for the southern regions and relatively late for the middle zone. The dates of arrival at various points of the Union are not fully clarified. In Bessarabia, birds appear in the spring around mid-March, near Kherson a week later than the gray heron, that is, in the last days of March, and near Mariupol, arrival begins about mid-April and ends at the end of the first third of May; in the more northern parts (Dnepropetrovsk region), the main mass of birds flies at the end of April. Birds arrive early in the Transcaucasus. On the Black Sea coast, the first individuals appear about the middle of March, and from that time the migration lasts until the end of the first third of May. Even earlier arrival in the eastern parts of Transcaucasia and in particular near Lankaran, where, as already noted above, some individuals overwinter in warm winters.
The autumn migration of birds to the south begins with the first cold snap. In Podolia, it takes place in October. In the Kharkov region, singles and groups of red herons begin to fly south from the first days of September. A noticeable passage is delayed until about half of this month. Later, between October 13 and November 13, herons fly from Bessarabia (Osterman, 1915). In eastern Iran, migrating red herons were observed as early as September 15 (Zarudny, 1903).
During migration, most birds fly at night, rising from the reeds with the onset of evening twilight or shortly before sunset. In the morning, the flight ends after dawn. Relatively rarely, these herons fly in large groups, more often several birds at a high altitude, lining up at an angle or transverse line. There are observations about the accession of single red herons to migratory flocks of night herons.
Biotope. The red heron universally prefers vast open spaces occupied by water bodies, largely overgrown with reeds, reeds, and less often undersized willow shrubs. In areas where the open landscape is disturbed by the presence of forests, birds become few or not found at all. The feeding stations of the species are more diverse. On the Syr-Darya, some birds forage near the nests, standing on the edge of the thickets near a small reach. Other birds, on the contrary, fly far from their nests, visiting shallow lakes, less often tamarisk thickets flooded with hollow water, and even more rarely the shallows of the Syr Darya. On the eastern coast of the Aral Sea, herons feed on sea shallows covered with rare reeds. When hunting, the red heron goes deep (to the very belly) into the water and, in anticipation of prey, stands in one place for hours without changing its position. Unlike the gray heron, it avoids human proximity everywhere, nesting in the most deaf and hard-to-reach areas. In search of food, on the contrary, it is found near fishing villages and in agricultural lands.
Number. The red heron is a common breeding species of the southern treeless strip of the European and Asian parts of the Union. In the forest-steppe zone, the number of birds is sharply reduced. It can be attributed to ordinary for Bessarabia, the lower reaches of the rivers flowing into the Black Sea, for the Volga delta and in general for the northern coast of the Caspian Sea, for the eastern coast of the Aral Sea, Irgiz and Turgay, and in Transcaucasia for the low regions of Armenia, but is relatively rare in Lankaran lowlands. Very common in the eastern Azov region and positively numerous in the delta of the Amu-Darya and in the lower reaches of the Syr-Darya in the Kzyl-Orda region. In general, the red heron is a rather numerous species of our country.
reproduction. Breeds in separate pairs or forms small colonies, sometimes independent, sometimes together with gray and white herons and spoonbills. Colonial nesting sites are known in the regions of Kharkov, Kyiv, in the Volga delta, in the lower reaches of the Irgiz, in the lower and middle reaches of the Syr Darya. However, even here many birds breed in separate pairs. Nests are built on old reeds and reeds sticking out of the water or on crumpled heaps of these plants. Much less often, birds erect their buildings on stunted thorn bushes growing among reeds, or on water-flooded willow and alder bushes. There are indications in the literature about the nesting of red herons in small colonies on trees, sometimes with several nests on one tree (Menzbier, 1918). Such cases should be considered as an exception and are not typical for our country.
Depending on the nature of nesting, the material for building nests is the stems and leaves of reed and reed deadwood, or when building nests on bushes - thin dry rods of these plants with an admixture of reed leaves in the tray. On the Syr Darya, in addition to dry reed stems and leaves, red herons often use dry branches of thorny bushes. The nests are similar in shape and character to the nests of other herons. During oviposition, their shape is an inverted cone with a deep tray and translucent walls.
With the advent of chicks, nests are trampled down, lose their original shape and become almost flat. The size of the nests varies greatly, but in general they are small compared to the size of the bird. Their transverse diameter reaches 60, rarely 80 cm, the height of the nests during the laying period is 40-50 cm. Birds apparently do not use old buildings and build new nests every year. Both birds of the nesting pair participate in nest building. The number of eggs in full clutches is 3-5 (in Western Europe even 6, 7 and 8).
Eggs of the red heron vary greatly in size and shape. Most eggs are egg-shaped, elongated, or swollen. On some eggs, a blunt and sharp cone is weakly expressed. The color of the shell, like that of the gray heron, is greenish-blue when demolished, and later fades heavily and becomes contaminated with excrement. Their size is somewhat smaller than that of the gray heron, and by this feature on the mass material they are well distinguished from the eggs of the previous species. Egg sizes (17) 53.0-57.5 mm X 37.9-39.2 mm, on average 54.8 x 38.5 mm.
In the northern parts of the range, laying occurs much later than in the south. Non-simultaneity is also observed in the same areas in individual pairs. At a time when the belated couples are just beginning to lay their eggs, in the nests of the early ones there are chicks covered with feathers. The time intervals between the laying of individual eggs are on average 3 days (Meylan). The first 3 eggs are laid every other day (Spangenberg). Incubation begins after the laying of the first egg, which is proved both by direct observations and by the different sizes of embryos in the clutch eggs. At the same time, the heron, having laid the first egg, sits firmly on it, leaving the nest only when absolutely necessary. Both birds of the nesting pair take part in incubation, but the participation of the male, compared to the female, is less. The exact period of incubation has not been established, presumably 24-28 days (Wiserby, 1939). According to Osterman's observations (1915), incubation in Bessarabia lasts about a month. While the chicks are small, only the male brings food, later both parents take part in feeding. Fledged chicks, left alone in the nest, react with peculiar blows with their beak in the direction of the enemy when the harrier approaches. Chicks fly out at the age of about 6 weeks, two-month-olds keep on their own.
Nutrition. It feeds on fish, frogs, lizards, snakes, water and terrestrial insects and their larvae, occasionally mice, voles, rats. The main bird food in many parts of the country is still fish. On the Syr Darya, red herons rarely fly outside the reed and reed thickets and feed here mainly on small fish. During the movement of walking and flying locusts, appearing in masses in the reeds, the stomachs and esophaguses of birds are filled with this food (Spangenberg). Osterman (1915) considers fish to be the main food, he also mentions insects, frogs and lizards. Food is obtained occasionally during the day, much more often at dawn.
| Species name: | red heron |
| Latin name: | Ardea purpurea Linnaeus 1766 |
| English title: | purple heron |
| French title: | Heron pourpre |
| German name: | Purpurreiher |
| Latin synonyms: | for subspecies purpurea: Ardea rufa Scopoli, 1769; Ardea variegata Scopoli; 1769; Ardea caspia S.G. Gmelin, 1774; Ardea purpurata J.F. Gmelin, 1789; Ardea badia J.F. Gmelin, 1789; Ardea monticola Picot de la Peirouse, 1799; Ardea purpuracens C.L. Brehm, 1831; Ardea pharaonica Bonaparte, 1855; for subspecies manilensis: Phouxpurpurea ussuriana Shulpin, 1928 |
| Squad: | |
| Family: | |
| Genus: | |
| Status: | Breeding, migratory, occasionally wintering species. |
General characteristics and field signs
Outwardly, it resembles a gray heron, with which it can be confused at a great distance or in low light; however, the size of the red heron is somewhat smaller, and the neck looks noticeably thinner. In proportion to the head, the beak is thinner and longer; it is a spear-shaped continuation of the line of the forehead and the entire narrow head. In flight, the neck, like that of other herons, is bent like the Latin letter "S", due to which the head of the bird is pressed to the back. The flight resembles that of a gray heron, but the wing beats are sharper, “convulsive”, due to the lower body weight. The flying red heron can be distinguished from the gray heron by the graceful contours of the body and the slightly shorter length of the legs extended backwards, as well as by the noticeably darker coloration of the upper parts, without a sharp contrast on the wings between coverts and flight feathers. An essential distinguishing feature of the red heron is the fact that the middle finger (with a claw) is always longer than the tarsus; this, however, can only be seen by holding the bird. On the ground, it is distinguished by a "stealing" gait, which is facilitated by a shorter tarsus and relatively longer fingers. Much more often than the gray heron, it obtains food by pursuing prey on foot. When stopping, it stands in one position for a long time, allowing it to deliver a quick targeted blow.
According to E. P. Spangenberg (1951), it is less cautious towards humans than the gray heron; he associates this with the twilight (and even nocturnal) way of life. Unlike the gray heron, it rarely perches on trees, preferring to hide in reed beds.
The voice (cry in flight) is similar to that of the gray heron, but less loud (Spangenberg, 1951). Chicks "purr". Their voice in the nest can be conveyed by the words: “Pew-Pew, Khyu-Khu”, sometimes: “grau-rau-rau” and “ko-ko-ko” (orig.). For some researchers, the cry of an adult bird resembles a croak, and they transmit it as a loud “crack-craak” or “clack-clack-clack” at the nest (Bauer, Glutz von Blotzheim, 1966).
Description
Coloring. An adult bird in breeding plumage. A narrow plait of 3-5 elongated black feathers is developed on the back of the head (longer in males). The cap and back of the neck are black, the sides of the neck and head are buffy-red (to reddish-brown) with longitudinal black stripes from the corner of the mouth back to the back of the head and along the side of the neck. The chin, throat, front side of the neck are white; narrow dark longitudinal stripes or rows of longitudinal streaks also pass along the front side of the neck. On the goiter, elongated and pointed feathers are developed, light ocher with an admixture of dark mottled. The upper side of the body, from the neck to the tail, including the upper wing coverts, is slate gray (sometimes with a brownish coating in the upper part of the wings), the flight feathers are dark, the axillary feathers are slate. On the shoulder parts of the plumage, narrow elongated decorating feathers are developed, fringed over the wings and the back of the back; their color varies from light gray to ocher. The sides of the chest and belly, as well as the feathered parts of the lower leg and lower wing coverts of intense chestnut color, with the wing folded, the carpal fold is covered with loose plumage, forming a chestnut spot on the side. The leading edge of the wing is reddish. The middle of the chest and belly, undertail are black. The beak is yellow with a dark ridge, the unfeathered areas of the skin on the head are greenish-yellow, the iris is yellow. The legs are yellow or olive-yellow, the anterior side of the tarsus and toes are dark brown.
The winter attire of an adult bird differs from the breeding one in a less pronounced feather decoration (plaits, fringes on the back, “manes” on the goiter), and a duller color of the non-feathered parts of the body.
Chick. The first and second downy outfits are brownish-gray on the dorsal side, whitish on the ventral side, a whitish crest of elongated fluffs is developed on the head. Unfeathered areas of skin are dark with intense spotting on the head and neck. Beak with dark mandible and yellowish mandible, grayish legs, light iris.
Nest outfit. The plait on the head and decorating feathers on the back are absent, on the goiter they are poorly developed. The top is clay-brown with darker blurred centers of feathers, the cap is dark brown, the sides of the head, neck and underparts are reddish-ocher with rows of brown mottles, the undertail is whitish. Chestnut and slate-gray tones are poorly developed. The beak in young is yellowish-brown, shorter (dumbder) than in adults. The legs are olive or greenish yellow, the iris is pale yellow. Two-year-old birds are lighter in color compared to older ones, and have rufous borders on the upper wing coverts.
Structure and dimensions
Dimensions (mm) of red herons of the nominative subspecies (males and females) for the territory of the former. USSR (n = 25): wing length - 340-390, 367.2 on average; lantern length - 115-130; the length of the middle finger with a claw is 125-135 (Spangenberg, 1951); in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan: wing length - 340-390; tail length - 125-140; beak length - 112-146; tarsus length - 108-145 (Dolgushin, 1960; Salikhbaev, Bogdanov, 1961). Sizes for different subspecies and sex groups are given in Table. thirty.
| name of the body part | males | females | Source | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n | M | lim | n | M | lim | ||
| Ardea purpurea purpurea, for the territory of the former USSR | |||||||
| Wing length | 10 | — | 370-395 | 9 | — | 340-370 | Spangenberg, 1951 |
| Ardea purpurea purpurea. Palearctic | |||||||
| Wing length | 13 | 371 | 357-383 | 9 | 355 | 337-372 | Cramp, 1977 |
| tail length | 13 | 125 | 118-136 | 8 | 119 | 112-127 | |
| Beak length | 13 | 126 | 120-131 | 8 | 116 | 109-123 | |
| Lantern length | 13 | 122 | 113-131 | 8 | 118 | 112-123 | |
| Middle finger length | 13 | 132 | 121-139 | 7 | 126 | 118-131 | |
| Ardea purpurea purpurea, Palearctic | |||||||
| Wing length | — | 330 | — | — | 290 | — | Witherby et al. (1939), op. no Cramp, 1977) |
| Ardea purpurea manilensis, for the territory of the former the USSR | |||||||
| Wing length | 2 | — | 370, 370 | — | — | — | Spangenberg, 1951 |
| Ardea purpurea manilensis. Far East | |||||||
| Wing length | — | — | 370-401 | — | — | 360-388 | Shulpin (1927), op. after Spangenberg, 1951 |
| Beak length | — | — | 125-137,3 | — | — | 117,6-119,5 | |
| Lantern length | — | — | 128-142 | — | — | 125,3-129 | |
The data on body weight is as follows. For A. p. purpurea from the territory of the former USSR, the weight of two adult birds (sex not specified) is 1220 and 1225 g (Spangenberg, 1951). According to N.A. Zarudny (Zarudny, 1888, cited by: Spangenberg, 1951) - up to 1,650 g. Weight of males from Holland: 617-1,218 g; females: 525-1035 g (Cramp, 1977). The weight of the chick at hatching is 35 g, at the age of 50 days - 1 100-1 200 g (Tomlinson, 1978, quoted from: Cramp, 1977). For two males A. p. manilensis from the territory of the former USSR - 1310 and 1358 g (Spangenberg, 1951).
Moult
There is little data. In maturing (under one year of age) birds, a partial change of contour plumage and some wing coverts occurs in November-April, during wintering. In birds approaching two years of age, it begins as early as May. The moult of adult birds that have completed the breeding season begins in June and lasts until November, often until February. The replacement of primary primaries does not occur regularly, apparently, throughout the entire summer period, before the start of migrations. When describing molting, which is given above, both E. P. Spangenberg (1951) and Stanley Cramp (Cramp, 1977) refer only to the opinion of Witherby et al. (Witherby et al, 1939). We are not aware of later information on the molt of the species, which indicates that this process in red herons has been studied completely insufficiently.
Subspecies taxonomy
L. S. Stepanyan (2003), following E. P. Spangenberg (1951), distinguishes 3 subspecies, of which in the territory of the East. Europe and North. Asia is inhabited by two.
1.Ardea purpurea purpurea
Ardea purpurea Linnaeus, 1766, Syst. Nat., ed. 12, p. 236, "in the East"; France (Stresemann, 1920, Avifauna Macedonica, c. 226)
The western part of the range in Vost. Europe and North. Asia.
2. Ardea purpurea manilensis
Ardea purpurea manilensis Meyen, 1834, Nova Acta Acad. Caes. Leop. Carol., 16.suppl., c.102, Philippines.
Eastern subspecies; within the former The USSR inhabits Primorye and the lower Amur basin. It differs from the nominative subspecies in a somewhat larger size, an undeveloped spotted pattern in the lower part of the neck, darker, grayish-bulan breast feathers, a more saturated black color of the belly, and an admixture of lead-gray feathers in the ornamental braids on the back (Stepanyan, 2003).
The subspecies A. r. is not associated with the described territory. madagascariensis Oort, 1910 (3), settled in Madagascar. A number of ornithologists (Cramp, 1977; Howard and Moore, 1980) also distinguish another subspecies of A. p. bournei de Naurois, 1966 (4), settled on the Cape Verde Islands.
Notes on systematics
Within the genus Ardea, the red heron occupies a separate position and is distinguished by most taxonomists as the subgenus Pyrrherodia Finch et Hartlaub, 1870. The form bournei, which differs markedly from other races in its light red color of the upperparts and the weak development of the black pattern, is sometimes considered an independent species - the Cape Verdean heron (A bournei de Naurois, 1966).
Spreading
Nesting area. In the post-Soviet space - a southern species, in its distribution associated with the mouths of such European rivers as the Danube, Dnieper, Kuban, Volga, Terek, Ural. It nests in reed beds both along the western and eastern coasts of the Caspian Sea. In Central Asia - along the valleys of the Amu-Darya and Syr-Darya. In the Far East, it inhabits the very south of the Primorsky and Khabarovsk Territories. Found at the mouth of the river. Gorin, in the floodplain of the Lower Amur, on the lakes Evoron, Bolon, Chukagir and Udyl; on the Listvyan and Bolshaya Ussuri Islands near Khabarovsk (Roslyakov, 2000). In Primorye - a common type of lake. Khanka and its environs.
Outside the territory of the former In the USSR, migratory populations of the nominative subspecies also live in Spain, France, Belgium, Austria, Romania, Bulgaria, North. Greece, Turkey and North. Iran. Sedentary populations are known from the Central regions. Africa, located south of the equator, as well as in the very south of South Africa; special subspecies live in Madagascar and the Cape Verde Islands.
Figure 72.
a - nesting area; b - wintering area. Subspecies: 1 - A. p. purpurea; 2 - A. p. manilensis; 3 - A. p. madagascariensis; 4 - A. p. bournei.
wintering
Wintering grounds for birds of the nominative subspecies are located in Equatorial Africa north of the equator, as well as in the southeastern part of this continent. Occasionally, in winter, red herons were noted to the southeast. Caspian. Wintering grounds of subspecies A. p. manilensis breeding in Russia were not identified until the late 1950s. However, thanks to the ringing of chicks on the lake. Khanka, it was found that their wintering area is located throughout Indochina. marked on the lake. Khanka birds found in Yuzh. China, Vietnam, Thailand, the islands of Indonesia, on the northern coast of the Malay Peninsula (Fig. 72, 73).
Figure 73.
a - nesting area; b - flights.
In Asia, sedentary populations of A. p. manilensis live in Pakistan, India, South. China and Indonesia.
Migrations
The distribution of young birds from nesting sites is as follows. After the chicks leave the nest, already from the end of June and in July, they scatter in its vicinity at a distance of up to 20-50 km. In July and August, further dispersal of birds occurs when they are encountered at distances from 150 to 300 km from the nesting site. During this period, many of the birds move in directions opposite to the general course of the autumn migration: in the northern and northeastern directions (Schenk, 1934; Sapetin, 1978g). Only from the beginning of September does the “planned” flight of red herons to the south and southwest begin (Kishchinsky, 1978e). In migratory populations inhabiting European, North African and Central Asian countries, the dates of the last meetings in nesting areas are recorded in late August - early September (Strautman, 1954; Cramp, 1977). And already on September 15, migratory red herons were observed in Vost. Iran (Zarudny, 1903).
J. Shenk (Schenk, 1934), analyzing the dispersal of young red herons ringed in Yugoslavia, calls the time from July to September intermediate migration. During this period, birds born in the floodplains of the Danube were noted north of the birthplaces (37%), southwest (30%), south and southeast (27%). And only 6% of birds fly to the west (n = 70), while in the future the last and southern directions will be the main ones. In essence, the nature of the flight of young herons nesting in the Kuban delta and in the north is the same. Caspian (Sapetin, 1978). In November-December, the returns of both Danubian and Azov-Caspian birds lie already to the west and south-west of the marking sites. They are registered in Italy, France, Sicily, Malta, in South. Tunisia. This allows us to state that the main area of their autumn-winter concentration is located in the countries of the West. Mediterranean. Azov herons master the Eastern Mediterranean. Returns of rings from them were received from Greece, from Cyprus, from Turkey, Egypt. With further movement to the south, they reach the countries of Western and Center. Africa, with Danube birds occupying more western wintering areas. European populations finally "liberate" nesting areas in late October - November (Schenk, 1934; Sapetin, 1978).
To complete the picture of the movement of western rudaceous herons and their distribution during the non-breeding period, several data can be given that are not included in the framework of the concept proposed above. Thus, a heron tagged in the Volga Delta by a chick, at the age of 2 years, was found in November in the south-west of Cameroon (5,300 km from the banding site). A bird born in the Terek delta, in its third year of life, on May 7, was killed in the Telavi region of Georgia. Finally, the third bird born in the lower reaches of the Manych was caught in Kalmykia in the first year of life in October, 600 km southeast of the birthplace (Sapetin, 1978).
The migrations of birds nesting in Central Asia have not been studied using ringing. By analogy with related species of herons, it can be assumed that they also have an “intermediate flight”, when these birds fly in all directions from their birthplaces over areas suitable for food production. Then, with the onset of autumn cooling, the herons rush to the south and southwest. Apparently, already wintering birds were observed on the southeastern shore of the Caspian Sea in the area of the Gassan-Kuli nature reserve, as well as in the valley of the Atrek and its tributaries, in the North. Iran. There is no documented information about the longer distance movements of the Central Asian red herons during migration.
From 2,780 chicks ringed on the lake. Hank in 1960-1973, by 1975 42 ring returns (1.5%) were received, i.e. the return of the rings was almost four times lower than for the subspecies A. p. purpurea. V.M. Polivanov (1978) explains this by the lack of tradition of heron hunting in this region and by the very incomplete return of the rings. For chicks of the eastern subspecies, as well as for the western subspecies, early-autumn dispersion of young (in July-September) in all directions was recorded, followed by migration to the south-south-west along the eastern coast of Asia up to the Malay Peninsula (Fig. 74) .
Figure 74.
a - areas of "intermediate" migration; b — borders of dispersal areas for birds of different populations. Populations: I - "Danubian", II - "Azov-Caspian", III - "Primorsko-Pacific".
Flying in the European part of the former. The USSR are marked up to the 60th parallel. So, for example, in October 1957, one individual, caught in Bavaria and kept there for 2 years in captivity, was obtained near the village. Vozhega, Vologda region (Shalakov, 1958). Separate sightings of red herons were noted throughout the 20th century. in Lithuania, Latvia, Belarus, and in the Russian Federation - in the Pskov, Novgorod, Ivanovo, Nizhny Novgorod, Tambov, Penza, Saratov regions, in Mordovia and Tatarstan (Vadkousyu, 1964; Fedyushin, Dolbik, 1967; Popov, 1977; Puzanov et al., 2005 and others).
habitat
The red heron prefers vast open spaces, largely occupied by water bodies, with extensive thickets of reeds and reeds and, much less often, undersized willow bushes (Spangenberg, 1951). Such lands are located in Vost. Europe and North. Asia, mainly in the estuarine sections of southern rivers, along the coasts of the southern seas and lake systems. In forested areas, in mountainous areas and in deserts, the red heron is rare or not found at all. True, there are observations that in the desert regions of Kazakhstan, red herons sometimes fly quite far in search of food (Kostin, 1936, quoted from: Salikhbaev, Bogdanov, 1961). Nests are located far from human settlements; on the contrary, during feeding, the birds themselves are often found near fishermen and in agricultural land (Spangenberg, 1951).
The most typical habitat for nesting is reed lining in deltas and valleys of southern rivers. Here these birds find both remoteness from human settlements and the inaccessibility of nesting sites for humans and four-legged predators.
Feeding stations are varied. For example, on the Syr-Darya, many birds forage near the nests, standing on the edge of a small pool. Others fly far from nesting colonies, delving into habitats unusual for them. They also get food everywhere along the gently sloping river banks, sometimes in freshly plowed fields, in steppe areas.
population
Specific data on the abundance of the red heron throughout the breeding range on the territory of the former USSR in the 1960s-1980s. missing. The authors of regional ornithological reports most often characterize it as a “common”, “not rare” or, conversely, “rare”, and sometimes “accidentally vagrant” species (Vorobiev, 1954; Strautman, 1954; Dolgushin, 1960; Panov, 1973 ; Kostin, 1983; Sagitov, 1987; Patrikeev, 2004; etc.). E. P. Spangenberg (1951), based on data from the first half of the 20th century, classifies the red heron as a “rather numerous species” of the then territory of the USSR.
On Sev. Caspian in the 1960s-1970s nest counting was carried out by the Caspian Ornithological Station. According to the results of these accounts, in 1973-1974. out of 46.6 thousand nests of colonial copepods and storks, the red heron owned 3,010 nests. At the same time, 2450 nests were found in the Volga delta, 510 nests in the Terek delta, and 50 nests on the Prikumsky lakes (Bondarev, 1975).
According to information collected by M. Patrikeev (Patrikeev, 2004), in the 1950s-1960s. 600-700 pairs of these birds nested in the vicinity of the Kyzyl-Agachsky Reserve, in the Kalinovsky Estuary in 1983-1984. - 52-440 pairs, in other parts of Azerbaijan (Mahmudkhala, delta of the Kura river, Shorgel lake, valleys of the Varvara and Samur rivers, etc.) in 1980-1998. - about 60-80 pairs. A large nesting center for ankle-footed animals exists in Vost. Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov, in particular, at the mouth of the Kuban. As a result of summer counts in this area in 1953-1954. the number of red herons that fed on the estuaries was estimated at 6.5-7 thousand individuals, which then accounted for about a quarter of the total abundance of birds of this group (Vinokurov, 1960).
It is advisable to provide data on the specific number of nesting pairs of the red heron with some information on the dynamics of the population of the species in a number of countries in Western Europe. Europe based on materials collected until the mid-1970s. The countries of the Mediterranean were distinguished by a greater abundance of the species, where the red heron finds more suitable conditions for living in the floodplains of the mouths of the rivers flowing into the Mediterranean Sea. In Spain, the total number of breeding pairs approaches 1,000 (Fernandez Cruz, 1975). In France for 1964-1968. it was estimated at 2,100-2,500, and in 1974 at 1,350-1,500 breeding pairs. In Italy in 1975 - 1,500-2,400. In Greece - about 300. In countries located to the north, the number of the species is much lower. In Zap. In Germany, the red heron nested in the Rhine valley. Here it was first discovered in 1967; in 1968, at least 9 pairs were counted, in 1970 - up to 18-20 pairs. In the mid 1970s. perhaps 20-30 pairs nested. In Switzerland in 1941, 3 pairs were recorded, by 1955 their number increased to 54. Then a decline followed, and in 1961 40-45 pairs were noted, and in 1972 - only 8-10 pairs. In Austria in 1950-1955. found 240-350 pairs. For the territory of the former Czechoslovakia, nesting has been known since 1947. 4-20 pairs. In Hungary, in one of the colonies (Kisbalaton) in the period from 1968 to 1972. the number decreased from 107 to 37 pairs. No more than 200 pairs nested on the Cape Verde Islands (Cramp, 1977). Thus, in the mid-1970s. in the countries of the European Mediterranean, the population of the red heron was estimated at 5,300, and in the more northern countries of the West. Europe - approximately 400 nesting pairs.
Considering these data as a whole, we see that the number of red herons in the 1930-1970s. in Western Europe fluctuated considerably. In the southern regions, as a rule, during this period, an almost twofold reduction in its number was noted, in the northern regions, the growth of known settlements and the emergence of new nesting sites. In all likelihood, changes in the number of red herons in the European part of the former USSR took place in a similar way.
In the Atlas of Breeding Birds of Europe for the 1990s. the following data are given: France - 2,750, Spain - 1,100, Romania - 1,000, Hungary - 900, Italy - 600, the Netherlands and Portugal - 250 each, Greece - 150, other European countries, with the exception of Russia, - 70 pairs. At the same time, the Western European population of the red heron is estimated at 7,766-8,556 (average 8,090) pairs. It is believed that 800 pairs nested in Ukraine in the same years, 150 pairs in Moldova, and 40-90 thousand pairs in Russia (60 thousand pairs on average) (Bankovics, 1997). No specific data on which this obviously overestimated number of herons in Russia is based is given.
According to the data published by the International Association for the Protection of Birds BirdLife International (Bird Life International, 2004) and, apparently, the most complete to date, at the turn of the 20th-21st centuries, the total number of the European population of the red heron was 29-42 thousand breeding pairs, of which 10-15 thousand pairs nested in Russia, 6.7-11.9 thousand pairs in Ukraine, 250-350 pairs in Moldova, 80-330 pairs in Armenia, 250-500 pairs in Azerbaijan. The general trend of the European population is a moderate decrease in numbers; the same trend can be traced in Russia (Mishchenko et al., 2004).
There is no specific information on the number of red herons in Central Asia and Kazakhstan. Judging by the data cited by I. A. Dolgushin (1960), in Kazakhstan, even in typical habitats, this species is rather scarce. The same author believed that on the eastern coast of the Aral Sea, the heron is common only in the segment of the Syr Darya valley between Dzhusalami and Chiili, i.e. over a 300 km stretch. In Uzbekistan, it is quite common in the delta of the river. Amu-Darya and south. Aral Sea (Sagitov, 1987). In other places nests rarely, sporadically. In the lower reaches of the Zeravshan and in the Ferghana Valley, nesting was not found (Salikhbaev, Bogdanov, 1961). In Turkmenistan, nesting is rare, noted mainly on the Amu-Darya, on the Tashauz lakes (that is, again in the Amu-Darya valley) and in the lower reaches of the Murgab (Dementiev, 1952). Due to sharp negative changes in environmental conditions in Central Asia, the number of red herons in this region, apparently, has greatly decreased (Birds of Central Asia, 2007).
In Primorye, the red heron nests along the banks of lakes Khanka and Doriceni, as well as near the hall. Posyet (Vorobiev, 1954; Panov, 1973). In the 1960s-1970s. here it was very common, and its nesting sites were quite accessible (Polivanov, 1965; Polivanov, Polivanova, 1971). N. N. Polivanova (1971) believes that in the area of Lake. Khanka breeds 1-1.5 thousand pairs. The high abundance and availability of red heron colonies on the lake. Khanka in those years is confirmed by the fact that in the 1950s. four times more chicks were ringed there than in the Sea of Azov, the Terek Delta and the Astrakhan Reserve combined, with approximately the same activity of taggers.
Yu. N. Glushchenko, D. V. Korobov, and I. N. Kalnitskaya (2003) estimate the current abundance of the species in the Khanka Lowland as extremely variable. They attribute the increase in the number of nesting birds to periods of high water levels in the lake. Khanka and maximum humidification of the southern and eastern coasts. In such years, the red heron, in their opinion, prevails in nesting among other species of the Ardeidae family. In 2002, 20 breeding pairs were found here; these authors believe that this is only a tenth of their true number. In addition, up to 50 pairs nest in the Khabarovsk Territory (Roslyakov, 2000). The given data can be regarded as a sign of a decrease in the number of red herons in Primorye by the beginning of the 21st century.
K. A. Vorobyov (1954) draws attention to the fact that this, in his opinion, “well-marked bird” was not discovered here by N. M. Przhevalsky in the 1860s, contemporaries of N. M. Przhevalsky and subsequent explorers until the end of the 19th century. The first (stored in collections) specimens of red herons in the Far East were taken on September 9 and 12, 1912. This leads him to assume that this species entered Primorye only at the beginning of the 20th century. EN Panov (1973) about the time of penetration of the red heron in Yuzh. Primorye reports evasively, referring only to the observations of L. M. Shulpin in the 1930s, recorded in the latter's diaries. Apparently, it can be assumed that the penetration of the red heron into the Russian Far East really happened at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries.
reproduction
Daily activity, behavior
The red heron is a crepuscular species; it feeds and collects food for its offspring in the evening, predawn and early morning hours, rarely during the day. E. P. Spangenberg (1951) even suggested a nocturnal lifestyle of this species, but S. Cramp (Cramp, 1977) definitely writes about the twilight lifestyle of the red heron, reporting both nocturnal and diurnal gatherings of resting birds. During the breeding season, adult birds stay near the nest during the day. The frightened fly away not far and, at the end of the alarm, return to the brood.
Migratory flocks are mostly monospecific. But sometimes red herons during migrations unite with the night herons nesting in the neighborhood, less often - with gray herons and great bitterns. Birds fly in an "angle" or "straight line" formation.
Nutrition
Carnivorous look. Only K. Kenzhegulov has information about the discovery of plants in the stomachs of birds (pieces of reed, cattail, pondweed, hara) (quoted from: Sagitov, 1987); in all likelihood, plant objects were accidentally swallowed by herons along with the main prey. In the portions of food brought to the nestlings, plants were not noted at all. All researchers confirm that the main food of the red heron is fish, to a lesser extent - frogs (Patev, 1950; Spangenberg, 1951; Vorobyov, 1954, etc.). Analysis of 208 stomachs of red herons in Vost. The Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov gave the following results. Fish made up 52% of the weight of their content, insects and their larvae - 23.1%, amphibians - 18%, mammals - 3.7%. Other objects, including birds, reptiles and plants - 2.3% (Vinokurov, 1965). At the same time, the mass of the daily diet of the red heron in the summer-autumn period reached 160-220 g (Vinokurov, Dubrovsky, 1957).
In Azerbaijan, fish (mainly commercial species) accounted for 27.4%, amphibians - 46.7%, arthropods - 23-30% (Tuaev, Vasiliev, 1971). Beetles, bears, lake frogs, Crimean lizards were found in the stomachs of birds caught in the Crimea in the spring (Shcherbak, 1966). Here in the steppe area - social voles, lizards. The burps of chicks (Crimea) included crucians, rudd, bears, and agile lizards (Kostin, 1983). S. Cramp (Cramp, 1977) also lists snakes, crustaceans, and occasionally birds, molluscs, and spiders as food objects. As a result of the autopsy of 113 stomachs of red herons shot in Hungary, it was found that fish (found in 52% of the stomachs) and insects were of paramount importance in the diet there: terrestrial beetles (46%), aquatic beetles and their larvae (38.9%) , dragonfly larvae (30.9%), water bugs (28.3%), as well as small mammals (common voles and, rarely, shrews) (24.7%) and amphibians (22.1%) (Vasvari, 1938 ). Among the fish eaten by herons, the most common in a particular locality are small (from 5 to a maximum of 22 cm long) cyprinids (roach, ide, rudd, bream, carp, crucian carp), pike, perch, gobies. The occurrence of certain fish species (the number of food samples in which this species was found as a percentage of the total) in the diet of the herons of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov was: carp - 36.3%, pike - 13.1%, perch - 7.1-11.1% ( Vinokurov, 1965).
Changes in the species composition of the ichthyofauna of water bodies cannot but affect the diet of herons. So, in the Taganrog hall. In the Sea of Azov, in the food of all ichthyophagous birds (including the red heron), in recent years, a prominent place has been occupied by silver carp (Carassius auratus gibelio), which has sharply increased its numbers. Pelingas (.Mugil soiuy), recently acclimatized in Azov, also began to be found among food objects (Lebedeva et al., 2006).
Enemies, adverse factors
Of the abiotic factors, storm winds and flooding have the greatest impact, leading to the death of nests with clutches and young chicks. The main enemies of herons are medium-sized mammals - such as a jackal, a fox - capable of destroying mainly single nests. In the Far East, herons are harmed by the raccoon (Procyon lotor) acclimatized there.
In the nests of red herons in the 1930s-1940s. flies were found - bloodsuckers (family Hippoboscidae) Ornithoponus (Lynchia) ardeae and a bug, not better defined (Hicks, 1959).
Economic importance, protection
Due to the piscivorous nature of the red heron, the assessment of the economic importance of this species, like other herons, was at one time the subject of heated discussions. In the middle of the XX century. many researchers drew attention to the negative importance of the red heron for fisheries, especially in the conditions of spawning and nursery ponds, where herons flock, attracted by the abundance and availability of food (Oleynikov, 1953; Pakhulsky, 1957; Oleinikov and Danilov, 1958; Vinokurov, 19596; Nazarenko , Popova, 1959; Smogorzhevsky, 1959). True, many researchers have paid and are paying attention to the fact that herons choose mainly defective and sick fish, thus performing sanitary functions. Assumptions about the "harm" of fish-eating birds are often biased or based on "doubtful data or incorrect calculations" (Gladkov, 1964).
With all the contradictory opinions about the real effect of herons on the productivity of fish farms, it must be assumed that such an effect is noticeable during periods of mass release of fry into water bodies. Observations of specialists have shown that eating fish is especially important in reservoirs that are abundantly overgrown with reeds. As a way to combat this phenomenon, A.A. Vinokurov (1965) proposed the elimination of overwater vegetation in the reservoirs of fish farms, which attracts legged birds here. According to his data, when in the autumn of 1953, paths and “Eriks” were mowed in the area of the heron colony in the Chumakov Estuary, the reed that remained along the edges of the swaths fell over the winter, got wet and drowned. As a result, the thicket array turned out to be torn apart, and the herons were forced to leave this place.
While hunting for waterfowl, the red heron is often shot along the way by amateur hunters. It was thanks to the hunters who caught ringed herons that it was possible to obtain information about post-breeding movements, migrations and wintering of this species. In the 1950-1970s. on the initiative of the Public Commission for the Promotion of Animal Records (Lvov, Ilyichev, 1979), records of game production were carried out in all republics of the then USSR (Priklonsky, 1968; Dolbik, 1984; Polyakova, 1984, 1984; Kashentseva, 1984; and others). Summarizing these data, it can be assumed that in the 1960s-1970s. on the territory of the former The USSR harvested about 900 thousand individuals of the so-called "other wetland game" per year, which included herons. Of course, this number included not only red herons, but also loaf, spoonbill, other herons and many shepherds. However, it can be assumed that several tens of thousands of red herons in those years served as indispensable prey for Russian and Central Asian hunters. Since the hunting efficiency has significantly decreased by now, the volume of heron prey has certainly decreased markedly. But, despite this, the red heron, obviously, is still hunted in the southern regions of the area we studied (Priklonski, Sapetina, 1990).