Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

 

Green Heron (Butorides virescens)

Green Heron [lateral view of stalking adult]. Photograph Credit: Stephen J. Stedman; Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee; 23 April 2012.

– 

Abundance: Fairly Common during spring, summer, and fall; Rare (often absent) during winter; recorded in all Regional counties (Map of UCR Distribution); the Regional breeding population is probably stable (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Summer Resident; Visitor during winter (4 records); specimen (8 June 1938; Rocky Branch, Wayne County, Kentucky; W. M. Perrygo; Wetmore 1940); photograph [ventral view of immature] (Carol D. Williams; western Putnam County, Tennessee; 15 September 2001); photograph [lateral view of close-up of adult head] (Stephen J. Stedman; Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee; 23 April 2012).

Regional High Count: 36 (8 August 1990; Putnam County, Tennessee; Stephen J. Stedman); FBC/FBB High Count: 21 (19 September 2009; Putnam County, Tennessee [FBC]; m. ob.); SBC/SBB High Count: 20 (10 May 2008; Putnam County, Tennessee [SBC]; m. ob.); CBC High Count: 1 (2 records; see Out-of-Season (Winter) Records [below]).

Out-of-Season (Winter) Records:

26 December 1977 (1) Barren/Allen counties, Kentucky (observer[s] unknown), a CBC record.

18 & 28 February, 10 March 1990 (1) City Lake Natural Area, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Barbara H. Stedman; Stedman and Stedman 1991), a Winter Bird Population Study record [first date only].

13 & 18 December 1992 (1) Hidden Cove Rd., Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Barbara H. Stedman), a CBC (count week) record on latter date.

31 December 2011 (1) Pulaski County, Kentucky (Scott Marsh, Rhonda Bryant), a CBC record.

20 December 2014 (1) White County, Tennessee (D. A. Downs et al.), a CBC record.

Regional Extreme Dates:

    Early Spring: x (

    Late Fall: x (

    Note: Spring arrival usually widespread by 10 April; fall departure variable but usually largely complete by 10 October.  Regional dates of earliest reported spring arrival and latest reported fall departure for the years 20022011 follow:

Year Early Spring Arrival Late Fall Departure
2002 8 April 20 October
2003 2 April 1 October
2004 29 March 29 November
2005 7 April 21 October
2006 1 April 16 October
2007 27 March 11 October
2008 5 April --
2009 2 April 3 October
2010 2 April 29 September
2011 4 April 23 October *

* See also Out-of-Season (Winter) Record (above).

Breeding: Confirmed (Recent). 

Habitat: x

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: Registered on 8 (of 125) monthly check-lists during 2003 and on 33 (of 206) check-lists during 2004, leading to YardWatch frequency classifications of Very Uncommon and Uncommon, respectively; neither of these YardWatch frequency  classifications is consistent with the overall Regional abundance classification.

Foray Results: A summary of data from UCR Forays follows (to view a map displaying foray data for a county or a sub-Region for this species, click on the name of an underlined county or state below):

County Dates when Foray Conducted Total Blocks
in County *
Total Blocks in which
Green Heron
Recorded
Total Individuals
Recorded
         
Adair 816 June 2014 46 4 9
Barren 1–6 June 2013 54 12 14
Clinton 12–14 June 2009 24 9 4
Cumberland 1620 June 2014 35 7 7
McCreary 30 May5 Jun 2011 51 11 14
Metcalfe 812 June 2013 32 4 5
Monroe 1–12 June 2015 35 14 11
Pulaski 511 June 2010 72 12 10
Russell 1316, 2629 June 2012 31 5 5
Wayne 28 May3 June 2012 54 10 10
         
Kentucky   434 (408) 86 (19.8%) 89
         
Bledsoe 1824 June 2012 48 13 14
Clay 12–15 June 2010 30 8 9
Cumberland 29 May4 June 2010 75 15 10
DeKalb 2326 May 2008 40 9 11
Fentress 1117 June 2012 55 10 9
Jackson 29 May1 Jun 2009 40 12 18
Macon 1722 June 2013 32 8 9
Morgan 1–8 June 2014 58 9 13
Overton 2329 May 2011 47 11 17
Pickett 2225 May 2009 24 4 5
Putnam 6–12 June 2011 46 25 40
Scott 924 June 2016 62 10 13
Smith 1525 June 2015 37 5 8
Van Buren 13–15 June 2011 33 10 10
Warren 1–10 June 2016 47 10 10
White 1–6 June 2015 50 15 17
         
Tennessee   724 (651) 174 (24.1%) 213
         
Region   1158 (c. 1059) 260 (22.5%) 302

* Because some foray blocks fall into two or three counties, the total of blocks in the Kentucky or Tennessee portions of the Region is less than the sum of the blocks in the counties of each portion of the Region; similarly, because some blocks fall into both states, the total of blocks for the Region is less than the sum of the blocks in the two states.

Remarksx

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Barren Metcalfe Adair Russell Pulaski
Monroe Cumberland Clinton Wayne McCreary
Macon Clay Pickett Fentress Scott
Smith Jackson Overton Putnam Morgan
DeKalb White Cumberland
Warren Van Buren Bledsoe

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Burgess Falls SP, Putnam/White Counties, TN Barren River Lake SP, Barren County, KY
Cumberland Mountain SP, Cumberland County, TN General Burnside Island SP, Pulaski County, KY
Edgar Evins SP, DeKalb County, TN  
Fall Creek Falls SP, Bledsoe/Van Buren Counties, TN Pulaski County Park, Pulaski County, KY
Frozen Head SNA, Morgan County, TN Waitsboro Recreation Area, Pulaski County, KY
Rock Island SP, Warren/White Counties, TN  
Standing Stone SP, Overton County, TN Big South Fork NRRA, KY and TN
   
Cane Creek Park, Putnam County, TN  
Roaring River Recreation Area, Jackson County, TN  

Literature Cited