Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia, 38(3) 1995

Issue:

VOL 38(3) 1995

Keywords:

Ardeidae, fossils, Western Palaearctic, history

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History of herons of the Western Palaearctic

• Zygmunt BOCHEŃSKI

Abstract:

Fossil remains of herons are scarce in the Western Palaearctic - so far 5 species have been described, 4 of them in the extinct genera. The oldest is Proardea amissa from the Upper Eocene to Upper Oligocene of France. Most of the remains come from the Miocene. The oldest extant genus, Nycticorax, has survived since the Oligocene. Quaternary remains belong to 11 extant species only. In a few cases the Quaternary records suggest that the distribution of the species was formerly wider than the recent one. This applies to Botaurus stellaris, Nycticorax nycticorax, Butorides striatus, Egretta garzetta, E. alba, Ardea cinerea and A. goliath.