Boat-billed Heron

Cochlearius cochlearius (Linnaeus, 1766)

45–51 cmLength643 gWeight

The boat-billed heron (Cochlearius cochlearius), colloquially known as the boatbill, is an atypical member of the heron family.

Busiest months: February–March · Most records: Costa Rica, Belize, Brazil

Least Concern

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: February–March · Most records: Costa Rica, Belize, Brazil

Boat-billed Heron has been recorded at 317 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 21 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Refugio mixto Caño NegroCosta Rica3,780 records
Tárcoles – Tour en BoteCosta Rica2,895 records
Summit PondsPanama2,376 records

More places

CATIE-TurrialbaCosta Rica918 records
Rio La TovaraMexico890 records
Sendero BogarínCosta Rica757 records
Crooked Tree Wildlife SanctuaryBelize703 records
Pantanal – P. Jofre boat on Rio Cuiabá & tributariesBrazil622 records
Sani LodgeEcuador587 records
PN Tikal – antigua pista de aterrizajeGuatemala490 records

Countries and regions with the most records

Costa Rica Belize Brazil Panama Ecuador Mexico Guatemala Honduras

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The boat-billed heron (Cochlearius cochlearius), colloquially known as the boatbill, is an atypical member of the heron family. It is the only member of the genus Cochlearius and was formerly placed in a monotypic family, the Cochleariidae. It lives in mangrove swamps from Mexico south to Peru and Brazil.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Boat-billed Heron?

The Boat-billed Heron is about 45–51 cm long and weighs around 643 g.

Where does the Boat-billed Heron live?

Its breeding range: Middle America, South America: west-central Mexico to northeastern Argentina. It is most often recorded in Costa Rica, Belize and Brazil.