Chinese Pond Heron

The Chinese pond heron is an East Asian freshwater bird of the heron family, (Ardeidae). It is one of six species of birds known as "pond herons". It is parapatric with the Indian pond heron to the west and the Javan pond heron to the south, and these three are presumed to form a superspecies. As a group they are variously affiliated with the squacco heron or the Malagasy pond heron. As of mid-2011 there are no published molecular analyses of pond heron interrelationships and osteological data is likewise not analyzed for all relevant comparison taxa.