Yellow-crowned Night Heron

Description:

The name may imply that this bird is strictly nocturnal, but it was happily foraging in the marshes on a bright and sunny summer morning. Yellow-crowned night herons are in fact active both day and night. As their diet consists mainly of crustaceans, I suspect it has to do with the activity level of their favorite prey - here, where there are plenty of crabs scurrying about during daylight hours to warrant daytime feeding. The YCNH I have seen in NW Georgia were active at dusk, presumably because that is when the local crayfish become active.

Habitat:

Their breeding habitat is swamps and marshes from the eastern United States to north-eastern South America. They often nest in colonies, usually on platforms of sticks in trees or shrubs.

Notes:

Spotted near the marina in Charleston Harbor