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White-faced Heron

Egretta novaehollandiae

Photo by Neil Ross
Published on Project Noah
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Field Notes

Description:

The White-faced Heron, a relatively small heron of the family Ardeidae, is a common bird throughout most of Australasia, including New Guinea, the islands of Torres Strait, Indonesia, New Zealand, the islands of the Sub-antarctic, and all but the driest areas of Australia. This one was at the beach.

Habitat:

Locally nomadic, this heron was spotted poking around the rock pools at North Avoca Beach.

Notes:

The surf was really pounding the rocks, and had it not been for the receding tide this bird would have been nowhere near the edge of the rock shelf. It finally flew away when a freak wave got too close. I got as close as I could to take these photos, not wanting to scare the bird off. Unfortunately, I wasn't close enough so the clarity isn't the best. I sat quietly and watched it for about 20 minutes. This is my favourite beach in all the world.

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