We present another video recorded while observing the life of night herons. This time we can look into the bird’s nest!
The night heron nest is a flat platform made of thin twigs, without a lining, with a diameter of about 20-30 cm. These nests are built in dense thickets, on bushes, mainly willow and elderberry, at a height of about 3 m above the ground, less often on taller trees. The breeding period of the night heron in the colonies in the valley of the Upper Vistula can be very extended. In large colonies, birds arrive even at the beginning of April, and the chicks can hatch already in May, while in less populous ones, egg laying does not take place until July. Most birds brood for the first time in their third or fourth year. An adult female usually joins one brood a year, during which she lays 3 to 5 eggs. Incubation lasts 21 – 22 days, and both birds in the pair brood the eggs. The chicks are initially feathered and have greenish-grey skin.
The first feathers are beige, and the legs are green-yellow. The young night herons stay in the nest for about 20 days after hatching. They are fed by both parents for 40-50 days until they develop the ability to fly.