Aves - Pelecaniformes - Ardeidae
Parent taxon: Pelecaniformes according to J. F. Clements et al. 2017
See also Alvarez 1977, Brodkorb 1955, Brunet 1970, Carroll 1988, del Hoyo et al. 2014, Emslie 1992, Guthrie 1992, Hay 1902, Hay 1930, Lambrecht 1933, Livezey and Zusi 2007, Louchart et al. 2008, Mayr 2005, Mayr 2011, Mayr 2022, Mlikovsky 2002, Olson and Rasmussen 2001, Rasmussen et al. 1987, Scofield et al. 2010, Steadman and Takano 2019, Wetmore 1940 and Wetmore 1956
Sister taxa: Cladornithes, Fregatae, Gorsachius, Odontopteryges, Odontopterygia, Pelecanidae, Protopelicanus, Protoplotidae, Steganopodes, Threskiornithidae, Tigriornis, Torotix, Zebrilus, Zonerodius
Subtaxa: Agamia Ardea Ardeacites Ardeagrandis Ardeinae Botaurinae Botaurites Botaurus Bubulcus Butorides Cochlearius Egretta Ixobrychus Matuku Nyctanassa Nycticorax Palaeophoyx Pilherodius Syrigma Taphophoyx Zeltornis
Type: Ardea
Ecology: volant piscivore
Distribution:
• Quaternary of American Samoa (1 collection), the Bahamas (5), Bermuda (5), Brazil (2), Canada (1: Quebec), Cayman Islands (1), Chile (1), the Congo-Kinshasa (1), Cook Islands (1), Cuba (1), Ecuador (4), Egypt (7), French Polynesia (3), Greece (1), Italy (1), Japan (1), Jordan (1), Madagascar (4), the Marshall Islands (1), Mauritius (7), Mexico (5), New Zealand (1), Niue (1), Northern Mariana Islands (3), Papua New Guinea (1), Peru (1), Portugal (1), Reunion (3), Saint Helena (2), the Seychelles (1), Spain (1), Tonga (2), the United Kingdom (3), United States (37: California, Florida, Idaho, Maine, Oregon, Virginia), Vanuatu (1), Venezuela (2)
• Blancan of United States (5: Florida, Kansas)
• Pliocene of Australia (1), Chad (1), United States (2: Florida, North Carolina)
• Hemphillian of United States (6: California, Florida)
• Miocene to Pliocene of Kenya (1)
• Miocene of Chad (1), Ethiopia (2), France (1), Kenya (3), Moldova (1), New Zealand (3), Saudi Arabia (1), Thailand (1), United States (4: Florida, Nebraska)
• Oligocene of Belgium (1), Egypt (1)
• Eocene of Chile (1), France (1), United States (2: Wyoming)
Total: 153 collections including 224 occurrences