Gorsachius melanolophus
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The Malayan night heron (Gorsachius melanolophus), also known as Malaysian night heron and tiger bittern, is a medium-sized heron. It is distributed in southern and eastern Asia. The Malayan night heron has been found in India, Sri Lanka, Brunei, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Japan. It is a vagrant in Palau and Korea. Its range size is estimated at 1,240,000 km2. One roadkilled bird was discovered on Christmas Island, Australia where it is likely a vagrant. This bird occurs in forests, streams, and marshes. In Japan, population densities of the herons increased as undisturbed forest cover on islands increased.
The Malayan night heron is about 48 cm (19 in) long. The wingspan is about 86 cm (34 in). It is stocky, with a short beak. Its neck and breast are rufous. There are streaks going down the centre of the neck to the breast. The upperparts are chestnut and vermiculated. The flight feathers are blackish. The crown is black, the chin is white, and the eyes are yellow. The beak is black and the legs are greenish. The juvenile is greyish... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 2 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Taroko National Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 4 | Way Kambas National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 5 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 6 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Malayan Night Heron sighting in Kaeng Krachan National Park on a given day, based on 59 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 266th most-seen of the 360 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April and August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Malayan Night Heron in Kaeng Krachan National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May–July and September–March, the lowest months.
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Malayan Night Heron sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Malayan Night Heron sightings, Kaeng Krachan National Park ranks 5th at under 5%. The best odds are in Cuc Phuong National Park (Vietnam, about 10%), Manas National Park (India, under 5%) and Taroko National Park (Taiwan, under 5%).
Same family: Ardeidae
The closest relatives of the Malayan Night Heron that you can see in Kaeng Krachan National Park (family Ardeidae, Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns) are Little Egret (about 30%), Chinese Pond Heron (about 30%) and Purple Heron (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Malayan Night Heron is recorded against all the birds logged in Kaeng Krachan National Park (59 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
