Big White Wading Birds

 

Stalking Cattle Egret - Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1/2000, ISO 320, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm

Some of my friends call large white birds BWBs for Big White Birds, for this post I am just focusing on BWWBs, or Big White Wading Birds.

I'm starting with a Cattle Egret because it is the smallest of the BWWBs at a length of 20 inches. This adult Cattle Egret is in nonbreeding plumage. It has a short yellow bill, light yellow eyes with pale yellow lores, short dark legs and a stocky neck.

Landing Snowy Egret - Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1/1600, ISO 200, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 185mm

Next up is a Snowy Egret at 24 inches in length. This bird is also in nonbreeding plumage and while the Cattle and Snowy are both BWWBs there are differences. Snowy Egrets have a longer, darker bill, lemony yellow eyes and lores, dark legs with their trademark (they ought to trademark it) "golden slippers" and a slender long neck.

Hatch year Little Blue Heron - Nikon D200, handheld, f7.1, 1/1000, ISO 200, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm

Some novice birders might wonder why I am putting a Little Blue Heron into a post about Big White Wading Birds, bear with me because the mystery will be solved. Little Blue Herons are the same length as Snowy Egrets, 24 inches in length and during their first year immature Little Blue Herons are white and will gradually turn blue. Immature Little Blue Herons have bills that are thick and tapered, darker towards the tip and gray, green or pink near the base of it, they have pale eyes and lores, dull yellowish green legs and a slender, curvy neck.

White Ibis in the surf - Nikon D70, handheld, f5.6, 1/500, ISO 200, Nikkor 70-300mm VR at 300mm

 One inch longer in length than the Snowy and Cattle Egret is the White Ibis, easy to remember because of their long, curved pink to red bill. The bills remind me of Jimmy Durante's (showing my age) proboscis, sorry Jimmy. White Ibis have baby blue eyes with a partially bald face, pink to reddish legs and a long neck.

Hunting white morph Reddish Egret - Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1/1250, ISO 250, Nikkor 70-300mm VR at 300mm

Well here I go again talking about a bird whose name indicates the color red, not white. There are white morphs of the Reddish Egret along the Gulf of Mexico. At 30 inches in length this beautiful bird earns the title of BWWB. The white morph above is in breeding plumage and has a bi-colored bill that is pink near the base and about halfway to the tip it is black, they have pale eyes and in breeding plumage the lores are bluish purple, the legs are a steely gray/blue and the neck has a shaggy appearance to it.

Great Egret on a stormy morning - Nikon D200, handheld, f7.1, 1/640, ISO 160, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 300mm

Next up at 39 inches in length is the Great Egret. The egret above is in nonbreeding plumage. Great Egrets have thin yellow bills that come to a sharp point, yellow eyes and lores, black legs and feet and a very long, prehensile looking neck. I've seen them turn their necks into a pretzel, seriously!

Landing Wood Stork - Nikon D200, f7.1, 1/750, ISO 200, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm

The tall Wood Stork weighs in with a length of 40 inches and towers over the smaller BWWBs. The stork above is a second year bird.  Wood Storks have thick bills that curve downwards that can look like a chunk of wood, they have black eyes and as adults have a bald head and neck that is dark and wrinkly. The long legs are dark gray to black and the feet are a mottled black with bubble gum pink.

There is one other BWWB that I do not have images of and that is the white morph of the Great Blue Heron that is found mainly in southern Florida to the Florida Keys.

So while this post is mainly about Big White Wading Birds I have also covered birds whose names include red and blue.

Mia
OnTheWingPhotography.com