Cranes, storks, and ibises fly with their necks extended. Herons usually nest and roost in flocks, but they hunt food alone. Their nesting places are called heronries. The nests consist of loose, crude masses of sticks built in treetops or in bushes. The female lays three to six eggs.
Young herons are helpless for a few weeks after they hatch.
Their parents carry food to the young birds until they can fly. In search of food, the heron wades along the shores of streams with a stately stride, silent and alone. Sometimes the bird may stand for a long time with its head drawn between its shoulders. It appears to be asleep, but it is patiently waiting for fish, frogs, crayfish, and other small animals. As soon as it sees its prey, the heron makes a lightning dart and catches the victim in its spearlike bill.