---
title: "Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "A fish-eater that usually hunts by standing still, then generally swallows its catch whole."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/grey-heron-1.webp"
published: "2026-10-11"
updated: "2026-10-11"
---
# Grey Heron (*Ardea cinerea*)
> **Status**: Checked against 3 sources, listed under Sources below.
> **Tagline**: A fish-eater that usually hunts by standing still, then generally swallows its catch whole.
> **Soundtrack Vibe**: Indie Rock & Jangle Pop // Mitski, "Your Best American Girl"
> **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/7g5qe8VITjr13RIe8uM2p6)
> **Vibe Match**: A grey heron usually hunts by doing almost nothing, standing still until prey comes within striking range. Your Best American Girl holds back the same way: quiet, nearly bare verses, then the chorus strikes in a wall of distorted guitar.
## Biological Superpowers & Stats
- **Taxonomy**: *Ardea cinerea*
- **Danger Level**: Low
- **Conservation Status**: Least Concern ([IUCN Red List](https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2021-3.rlts.t22696993a166317370.en))
- **Superpower**: Typically waits for prey to come within striking range, then generally swallows it whole
- **Habitat**: Shallow water across Eurasia and Africa, from rivers and lakes to marshes and estuaries
- **Diet**: Mostly fish, plus insects, crustaceans, frogs and small mammals
- **Tags**: bird, carnivore, wetlands, ambush-predator
## Natural History & Behavior
## The Statue That Strikes
A grey heron usually hunts by doing almost nothing. It wades through shallow water or walks on land, then typically waits for prey to come within striking range. When one does, the heron seizes it with its bill, and the catch generally goes down whole in one quick gulp. Where the water is deeper, the usual pose is on one leg, and the wait sometimes stretches on for a long time. Their best hunting is thought to happen by moonlight.
Fish are the main course, which makes it a piscivore (a fish-eater). Insects, crustaceans, frogs and small mammals count as food too, and it sometimes takes tiny birds.
> **Aiming high**
> The biggest bird species a grey heron has been recorded trying to eat is the white-throated rail. How often it succeeds is not clear, but injuries have been noted after the attempts.
## Wingspan and Range
Body length typically runs from 84 to 102 cm, and the wingspan from 155 to 175 cm. BirdFacts, from the British Trust for Ornithology, gives a weight of 1.5 kg. In the air, a heron pulls its head back toward its body and trails its legs behind it. Cranes fly with the neck extended, which sets the two apart.
Grey herons live across Eurasia and Africa, and they need shallow water to fish in. That can include freshwater rivers, streams, lakes and marshes, saltwater or brackish inlets and estuaries, and even fish farms.
## Treetop Heronries
Grey herons are mostly solitary, but at breeding time they come together to nest in treetop colonies known as heronries. Some sites have stayed in use for many decades, and the UK has monitored them since 1928 through the Heronries Census. The UK breeding population is rated stable from 1929 to 2024, at 11 thousand pairs in 2013 to 2017.
Eggs typically take 25 to 26 days to hatch, and the chicks fledge (leave the nest) after about 50 days. Hatchlings compete for food and commonly push one another out of the nest. When food runs short, the smallest or weakest chick is sometimes killed by its siblings.
## Short Odds, Long Records
A grey heron that reaches breeding age typically lives 5 years, according to BTO's ringing data. Just 0.26 of juveniles, about a quarter, survive to age 2. The oldest ringed bird on BTO's record, set in 2003, reached 23 years, 9 months and 2 days.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### How big is a grey heron?
Animal Diversity Web gives a typical body length of 84 to 102 cm and a wingspan of 155 to 175 cm. *(Source: [Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan]())*
### How long does a grey heron live?
BTO's ringing data put typical life expectancy at 5 years for a bird that reaches breeding age. The oldest ringed bird on its record reached 23 years, 9 months and 2 days, a record set in 2003. *(Source: [British Trust for Ornithology]())*
### What does a grey heron eat?
Mostly fish. Insects, crustaceans, frogs and small mammals are on the menu too, and it sometimes takes tiny birds. It usually stands still in the water and waits for prey to approach. *(Source: [Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan]())*
## Sources
1. [Ardea cinerea (grey heron). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.]()
2. [BirdFacts: Grey Heron. British Trust for Ornithology.]()
3. [Ardea cinerea. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22696993A166317370.]()
*Published October 11, 2026. Last updated October 11, 2026.*
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