Japanese night heron
A species of heron (Gorsachius goisagi) native to Japan. Typically written in katakana as ミゾゴイ.
The Japanese night heron is a nocturnal bird and often hides in thickets during the day.
Breeding of the Japanese night heron has been confirmed in this area.
Katakana spelling is common for bird names and is the usual written form for this species.
Kanji spelling; rarely used in practice. The kanji 溝 means 'ditch' and 五位 is a type of heron, but the word is almost always written in kana.
The name ミゾゴイ is a compound of 溝 (mizo, 'ditch') and 五位 (goi, 'night heron'), referring to its habitat. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.