Japanese night heron

Japanese night heron
Conservation status
Vulnerable  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Pelecaniformes
Family:	Ardeidae
Genus:	Gorsachius
Species:	G. goisagi
Binomial name
Gorsachius goisagi (Temminck, 1836)
Distribution map
Synonyms
Ardea goisagi Temminck, 1836

The Japanese night heron (Gorsachius goisagi) is a species of night heron found in East Asia. It breeds in Japan, and winters in the Philippines and Indonesia. It is also seen in the spring and summer in Korea and the Russian Far East.

The Japanese night heron prefers dense, damp forest, in both its breeding and winter ranges. Common until the 1970s, this species is threatened by deforestation in its summer and winter ranges for timber and farmland. Other documented threats include the introduction of the Siberian weasel (Mustela sibirica) in its breeding range and nest predation by crows, due to the increasing crow populations. The current population is estimated at less than 1,000 mature individuals. Accordingly, the Japanese night heron is marked as a protected species in Japan and Hong Kong.

Future actions proposed to conserve this species include surveying its breeding habits throughout Japan and the Philippines, protecting its habitat, creating more public interest and awareness in the bird, and stopping invasive species from competing with it.