BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Ardea herodias fannini
Great Blue Heron, fannini subspecies
| Scientific Name: | Ardea herodias fannini Chapman, 1901 | ||||||||||
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| English Name: | Great Blue Heron, fannini subspecies | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1957. The AOU check-list of North American birds, 5th ed. Port City Press, Inc., Baltimore, MD. 691 pp. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Subspecies | ||||||||||
| Species Group: | Vertebrate Animal | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | B-GBHE-FA | ||||||||||
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| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G5T4 (Apr 2016) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S3B,S4N (Mar 2022) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Blue | ||||||||||
| Provincial FRPA list: | Y (May 2004) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Wildlife Act: | |||||||||||
| COSEWIC Status: | |||||||||||
| COSEWIC Comments: | Designated Special Concern in April 1997 and April 2008. Designation de?activated in December 2022 because it was concluded that this wildlife species is ineligible for assessment. | ||||||||||
| SARA Schedule: | 1 - Special Concern (Feb 2010) | ||||||||||
| General Status Canada: | |||||||||||
| Migratory Bird Convention Act: | |||||||||||
| Ecology & Life History | |||||||||||
| General Description: | |||||||||||
| Migration Characteristics: (Global / Provincial) | |||||||||||
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Nonmigrant: Local Migrant: Distant Migrant: Within Borders Migrant: |
N / N / N / na / |
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| Habitats: (Type / Subtype / Dependence) |
Agriculture / Cultivated Field / Facultative - occasional use
Agriculture / Hedgerow / Facultative - occasional use Agriculture / Pasture/Old Field / Facultative - occasional use Anthropogenic / Urban/Suburban / Facultative - occasional use Forest / Conifer Forest - Mesic (average) / Facultative - occasional use Forest / Conifer Forest - Moist/wet / Facultative - frequent use Forest / Deciduous/Broadleaf Forest / Facultative - frequent use Forest / Mixed Forest (deciduous/coniferous mix) / Facultative - frequent use Grassland/Shrub / Meadow / Facultative - occasional use Lakes / Lake / Facultative - frequent use Lakes / Pond/Open Water / Facultative - frequent use Ocean / Eelgrass Beds / Facultative - frequent use Ocean / Intertidal Marine / Facultative - frequent use Ocean / Marine Island / Facultative - frequent use Ocean / Reefs / Facultative - occasional use Ocean / Sheltered Waters - Marine / Facultative - frequent use Other Unique Habitats / Beach / Facultative - occasional use Other Unique Habitats / Estuary / Facultative - frequent use Other Unique Habitats / Mudflats - Intertidal / Facultative - frequent use Other Unique Habitats / Vernal Pools/Seasonal Seeps / Facultative - occasional use Riparian / Riparian Forest / Facultative - frequent use Riparian / Riparian Herbaceous / Facultative - occasional use Wetland / Marsh / Facultative - frequent use Wetland / Swamp / Facultative - frequent use |
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| Global Habitat Comments: | Nests colonially in tall Sitka spruce, western red cedar, western hemlock, pine, red alder and black cottonwood (Campbell et al. 1990). Isolation from disturbance appears to be an important factor in nest site selection (Werschkul et al. 1976, Henny and Kurtz 1978, Parker 1980). Foraging habitat includes aquatic areas generally less than 0.5 m deep, such as: marine intertidal areas, estuaries, riparian areas, wetlands, freshwater lakes, and muskegs (Gabrielson and Lincoln 1959, Jackman and Scott 1975, Willard 1977). These areas are generally within 5 km of the nest site, although some areas have been identified up to 33 km (Mathisen and Richard 1978, Parris and Grau 1979, Thompson 1979). | ||||||||||
| Provincial Habitat Comments: | Habitat keywords copied from species record. | ||||||||||
| Food Habits: | |||||||||||
| Global Food Habits Comments: | |||||||||||
| Global Phenology: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
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| Colonial Breeder: | N | ||||||||||
| Length(cm)/width(cm)/Weight(g): | / / | ||||||||||
| Elevation (m) (min / max): |
Global:
Provincial: |
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| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | N | ||||||||||
| Global Range Comment: | Resides along the Pacific coast from southeastern Alaska (Yakutat Bay) south to Washington. Non-breeders range north to Cook Inlet, Alaska and east to the interior of central and southern British Columbia (Gabrielson and Lincoln 1959, Tobis pers. com. 1992). | ||||||||||
| Authors / Contributors | |||||||||||
| Global Information Author: | Enns, A. | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | Feb 04, 2020 | ||||||||||
| Provincial Information Author: | |||||||||||
| Last Updated: | |||||||||||
| References and Related Literature | |||||||||||
1998. The Great Blue Heron. B.C. Minist. Environ., Lands and Parks, Wildl. Branch. 2pp. |
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British Columbia Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection. 2004. Great Blue Heron in Accounts and measures for managing identified wildlife. British Columbia Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection, Victoria, BC. 52pp. |
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Butler, R.W., and P.D. Baudin. 2000. Status and Conservation Stewardship of the Pacific Great Blue Heron in Canada. Pp. 247-250 in L.M. Darling, ed. 2000. Proc. Conf. on the Biology and Manage. Species and Habitats at Risk, Kamloops, B.C., 15-19 Feb., 1999. Vol. 1; B.C. Minist. Environ., Lands and Parks, Victoria, BC, and Univ. College of the Cariboo, Kamloops, BC. 490pp. |
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Campbell, R.W., N.K. Dawe, I.McT. Cowan, J.M. Cooper, G. Kaiser, and M.C.E. McNall. 1990. The Birds of British Columbia, Vol. 1. Nonpasserines: Introduction, Loons through Waterfowl. Royal B.C. Mus. in association with Environ. Can., Can. Wildl. Serv. 514pp. |
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Chatwin, T., L. Cortese and R. Joy. 2007b. Pacific Great Blue Heron population and monitoring Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands 2006. Report prepared for Ministry of Environment and the Heron Working Group. Nanaimo BC. 18pp. |
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Chatwin, T., S. Bonar, and M. Kissinger. 2006. Pacific Great Blue Heron Population and Monitoring Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands 2005. Prepared for B.C. Minist. Environ. and the Heron Working Group. B.C. Minist. Environ., Wildl. Working Rep. No. WR 110. Nanaimo, BC. |
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COSEWIC. 2008l. COSEWIC assessment and update status report on the Great Blue Heron fannini subspecies Ardea herodias fannini in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vii + 39pp. |
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Gebauer, M.B., and I.E. Moul. 2001. Status of the Great Blue Heron in British Columbia. B.C. Minist. Environ., Lands and Parks, Wildl. Branch. Working rep. WR-102. 66pp. |
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Ministry of Environment. 2008. Develop with Care, Great Blue Herons Fact Sheet #11. Environmental Guidelines for Urban and Rural Land Development in British Columbia. 2 pp. |
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Vennesland, R.G., and R.W. Butler. 2004. Factors Influencing Great Blue Heron Nesting Productivity on the Pacific Coast of Canada from 1998 to 1999. Waterbirds 27(3): 289-296. |
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2020. Species Summary: Ardea herodias fannini. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed May 27, 2026).