NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Lava Heron
Butorides sundevalli (Reichenow, 1877)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Final land excursion to Isla Bartomome and the lava beds on the E coast of Isla San Salvadore, a Lava Heron Butorides sundevalli.
Murray Foubister · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 320 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The lava heron (Butorides sundevalli), also known as the Galápagos heron, is a species of heron endemic to the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador. It was considered by some authorities, including the American Ornithological Society and BirdLife International, to be a subspecies (or even just a colour morph) of the striated heron (B. striata), and was formerly lumped with this species and the green heron (B. virescens) as the green-backed heron. Recent research has shown (unexpectedly) that it is more closely related to the North American green heron, than it is to the geographically much closer South American striated heron, and its status as a Galápagos endemic species is now universally accepted.
Wikipedia contributors, Lava heron; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T02:00:31.077493+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Butorides sundevalli (Reichenow, 1877)
- Name authority
- (Reichenow, 1877)
- Common name
- Lava Heron
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Pelecaniformes
- Family
- Ardeidae
- Genus
- Butorides
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPelecaniformes
- familyArdeidae Leach, 1820
- genusButorides Blyth, 1852
- speciesButorides sundevalli (Reichenow, 1877)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Butorides. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Striated HeronButorides striata (Linnaeus, 1758) | ArdeidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Ardea sundevalli Reichenow, 1877 Reichenow, 1877 | synonym |
| Butorides striata sundevalli (Reichenow, 1877) (Reichenow, 1877) | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=558962 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:NZ6L. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.