The purple heron (lat. Ardea purpurea) is an aquatic carnivorous bird that belongs to the heron family. It is a rather large and very impressive species of heron, with plumage in dark gray with auburn highlights, a long reddish neck with black stripes on both sides, a long, yellow beak, and black plumage on the head.
Being migratory birds, purple herons are summer visitors in Greece and throughout Europe. They prefer freshwater habitats at low altitudes, where they look for their food: mainly fish but also amphibians, insects, shellfish, as well as mollusks. In Greece, the purple heron mainly nests in northern Greece, and in all major wetlands. Prespes and the Delta of Evros are listed among the most important habitats of the red heron.
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