The Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) is a rather stocky heron. It has red eyes, yellow legs and black bill. The plumage is gray and white with a characteristic black cap and a pair of white plumes that extend from the back of the head. During the breeding season, the black feathers from the head and back emit a bluish-green gloss and the legs become red.
Diet consists of fish, frogs, small mammals, chicks of other birds, and insects. They usually nest in colonies between reeds in marshes, or up to 160 feet above the ground in trees. The bird lays three to four bluish-green eggs between February and March and again between June and July.
Night heron can be seen in the Chitrangudi Bird Sanctuary, Tamil Nadu.
