| Zigzag
Heron Zebrilus
undulatus Brazilian name: socoí-zigue-zague |
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Cristalino River, Mato Grosso, Brazil The Zigzag Heron is a difficult bird to see and it is relatively poorly known. While scarce, it is widespread in the Amazon and Orinoco Basins where it inhabits streams, pools and marshes in tropical forest. |
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We heard its song at dusk and dawn on the rio Cristalino and there must have been about 5 or 6 birds calling along a stretch of about 1 kilometre of river. We saw and photographed this bird at about 5:30 am. It was in a low bush overhanging the river where the flow was slow and it was standing less than a metre above the water. It was only when we went round the other side of the bush that we realised it was building a nest. This consisted of an untidy flattish platform of twigs. | |||
| Little is known about its eating habits but it has a much shorter bill than most herons. It seems to feed on small fish and flying insects. It is one of the smallest of the family at about 30 cm (12") There are illustrations in HBW, Volume 1, Pages 401 and 424 and Hilty & Brown, Plate 2 |
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| There are recordings and a distribution map on xeno-canto. | |||
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