{"id":708418,"date":"2026-07-24T07:11:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T07:11:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/708418\/"},"modified":"2026-07-24T07:11:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T07:11:08","slug":"rare-heron-seen-at-somerset-estate-where-river-has-been-allowed-to-run-free-birds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/708418\/","title":{"rendered":"Rare heron seen at Somerset estate where river has been allowed to run free | Birds"},"content":{"rendered":"

A rare black-crowned night heron <\/a>has been spotted on an estate in the south-west of England where an innovative river \u201creset\u201d is transforming the area into an oasis for birdlife.<\/p>\n

The heron was caught on camera in a jungly corner of the Holnicote Estate, where conservation experts have been restoring the landscape by allowing a river to return to its natural course.<\/p>\n

As well as the heron, charismatic birds including white-tailed eagles<\/a>, white storks and cranes have been seen at the National Trust estate.<\/p>\n

Holnicote Estate, where conservation experts have been restoring the landscape by allowing a river to return to its natural course. Photograph: James Beck\/National Trust\/PA<\/p>\n

Ben Eardley, restore nature project manager for Somerset<\/a> coast and countryside, said it had been incredible to see the heron. \u201cIt\u2019s rare to see this wetland species in the UK and so exciting that we observed one on our estate cameras on three consecutive days,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Eardley believes that more birds were congregating because so much of southern England is dry<\/a>, while parts of Holnicote remain wet and lush.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverywhere else is parched, so we\u2019re seeing lots of wildlife utilise it and lots of interesting bird species arrive. It\u2019s proving a real refuge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Holnicote\u2019s night heron, pictured, was spotted close to a camera set up to provide a livestream of the area. Photograph: National Trust<\/p>\n

As well as birds, the estate is providing a home or hunting grounds for water voles, otters, pine martens and grass snakes.<\/p>\n

The black-crowned night heron typically grows up to 66cm (26in), roughly half the length of the grey heron, which is commonly seen in the UK.<\/p>\n

It has grey plumage, yellow legs and a black \u201ccap\u201d from which trail long white plume feathers. As its name implies, it is mainly active at night.<\/p>\n

The bird is widespread across Africa, Asia, the Americas and mainland Europe. According to the British Trust for Ornithology, the first confirmed night heron breeding in the UK was recorded in Somerset in 2017 but it is categorised as a scarce visitor.<\/a><\/p>\n

Holnicote\u2019s night heron was spotted close to a camera set up to provide a livestream <\/a>of an area where beavers have been introduced<\/a> to play a part in the landscape restoration.<\/p>\n

A black-crowned night heron in Romania. Photograph: Pal Hermansen\/National Trust\/PA<\/p>\n

Eardley said there were trout, sticklebacks, eels and European bullhead fish in the water there. \u201cWhen we set up the camera, we weren\u2019t sure how popular it would be but people have really got into it. The night heron appeared front centre.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the past 500 years, England has lost approximately 90% of its wetlands<\/a>. Work is being done through organisations and partnerships to restore, enhance, increase and connect the lost habitats.<\/p>\n

For centuries the River Aller at Holnicote had been carefully controlled by landowners and farmers, largely confined to a narrow channel<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A pond at Holnicote Estate, Somerset, which was recently created to encourage and benefit wildlife. Photograph: Nick Upton\/National Trust<\/p>\n

Inspired by schemes in the wilds of Oregon in north-west US, a stretch of the river was liberated, allowing the water to spill out and find its own way<\/a>, creating smaller streams, more pools and boggy areas, better for flora and fauna, with the slower water flow making flooding less likely.<\/p>\n

Eardley said it had led to a surge in creatures including reptiles, amphibians and insects \u2013 which in turn attracted predators.<\/p>\n

While the night heron and white-tailed eagles \u2013 which have been re-introduced <\/a>on the Isle of Wight after being driven to extinction in the UK \u2013 have been seen close to the beavers\u2019 home, the cranes and storks have frequented the wider estate. \u201cThe birds are very visible indicator of an ecosystem getting more diverse.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A rare black-crowned night heron has been spotted on an estate in the south-west of England where an…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":708419,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[59,57,58,50,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-708418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-kingdom","tag-gb","tag-great-britain","tag-greatbritain","tag-news","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708418","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=708418"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708418\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/708419"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=708418"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=708418"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=708418"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}