Boat-billed heron

Cochlearius cochlearius · The boat-billed heron is a nocturnal member of the heron family that lives in mangrove swamps from Mexico south to Peru and Brazil.

Also called Boatbill.

Boat-billed heron
Photo: Thomas Fuhrmann, CC BY-SA 4.0
Boat-billed heron
Photo: Murray Foubister, CC BY-SA 2.0
Boat-billed heron
Photo: Fernando Flores from Caracas, Venezuela, CC BY-SA 2.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAves
OrderPelecaniformes
FamilyArdeidae
GenusCochlearius
SpeciesCochlearius cochlearius

Where it lives

Mangroves and swamps from Mexico to Peru and Brazil.

Fun facts

  • Its huge, scoop-shaped bill is so sensitive to touch that it can feel for prey in pitch-dark, muddy water.
  • It only hunts after dark, heading out about 30 minutes after sunset, and refuses to feed if any light—even moonlight—is around.
  • Males sport a bigger head crest than females, likely used to attract mates.
  • To catch fish, crabs and shrimp, it either lunges at prey or scoops the water's surface with its odd bill.

Play it

The Boat-billed heron was the creature in Birder on November 8, 2026. Can you identify tomorrow's from its photos? Every day brings a new creature to place from kingdom to genus, map and name.

Play today's creature or replay a past daily

Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).