Sunbittern
Eurypyga helias (Pallas, 1781)
The sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) is a species in the family Eurypygidae, order Eurypygiformes. Recorded adults weigh 200 g to 237 g and live up to 15 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the sunbittern
- Weight
- 200 g – 237 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 15 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- wetlandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 27 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2src for Young per litter or clutch
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the sunbittern live?
Not recorded
What is the sunbittern?
The sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) is a bittern-like bird of tropical regions of the Americas, and the sole member of the family Eurypygidae (sometimes spelled Eurypigidae) and genus Eurypyga. It is found in Central and South America, and has three subspecies. The sunbittern shows both morphological and molecular similarities with the kagu (Rhynochetos jubatus) of New Caledonia, indicating a Gondwanan origin, both species being placed in the clade Eurypygiformes.
From the Wikipedia article “Sunbittern” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sunbittern&oldid=1381603063), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
What does the sunbittern sound like?
Is the sunbittern endangered?
The sunbittern is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the sunbittern classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderEurypygiformes
- familyEurypygidae
- genusEurypyga
- SpeciesEurypyga helias (Pallas, 1781)
Synonyms Ardea helias
Other names and names in other languages (41)
- واق الشمسArabic
- Günəş vağıAzerbaijani
- Слънчева чаплаBulgarian
- Bongorz-heolBreton
- ocell solCatalan
- Bisësë́rëcjp
- slunatec nádhernýCzech
- crëyr haulWelsh
- SolrikseDanish
- SonnenralleGerman
- suna eŭripigoEsperanto
- TiganaSpanish
- Ave solSpanish
- Garza del SolSpanish
- päikesekurgEstonian
- بوتیمار آفتابیPersian
- aurinkokurkiFinnish
- Caurale soleilFrench
- סופית שמשHebrew
- sunčanicaCroatian
- guvatgémHungarian
- Tarabuso del soleItalian
- ジャノメドリJapanese
- მზეყანჩასებრნიGeorgian
- 뱀눈새Korean
- sauliapaukštisLithuanian
- Yáhashjool yił aheełtʼéhiiNavajo
- ZonneralDutch
- słonecznicaPolish
- garça-solPortuguese
- pavãozinho-do-paráPortuguese
- Pasărea soareluiRomanian
- Солнечная цапляRussian
- pachriašteľ nádhernýSlovak
- Sunčana čapljaSerbian
- solrallSwedish
- นกซันบิตเทิร์นThai
- BalabanyelvesiTurkish
- Güneş balabanıTurkish
- тіганаUkrainian
- 日鳽Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataIUCN Red List
Relatives of the sunbittern
Other species in the same order Eurypygiformes.
Kagu
Rhynochetos jubatus
Lowland kagu
Rhynochetos orarius
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the sunbittern?
An adult sunbittern weighs 200 g – 237 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the sunbittern endangered?
The sunbittern is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
How long does the sunbittern live?
The sunbittern has a recorded lifespan of 15 years.
What kind of animal is the sunbittern?
The sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) belongs to the family Eurypygidae in the order Eurypygiformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/sunbittern
“Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/sunbittern.
@misc{sunbittern_2026,
title = {Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/sunbittern},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}