A rainforest streamside heron whose white crest is visible when raised. It occurs in western Africa, feeds alone, and may be nocturnal, according to the specialist group.
It is slender, with black-and-buff crossbars, a black crown, and a white crest. In males the crest is usually hidden by darker feathers until raised. Females tend to be smaller, with pink-cinnamon underparts.
It uses small streams, forest swamps, river gallery forest, and mangrove-lined coastal streams in tropical rainforest. It feeds alone and may be nocturnal; reported foods include small fish, crabs, frogs, snakes, and insects.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
A 2019 Ramsar sheet for Site 1018 in Benin lists the White-crested Tiger Heron as Endangered on the national Red List and describes its range there as limited and its population as declining.