06/05/2019

Egret or Heron?
focus on the bill structure
who would have guessed?

Erdos 2019

Snowy Egret (nonbreeding), California, December. Note the slim dark bill. Photo by brian Sullivan

Great Egret (nonbreeding), California, February. Note the mostly yellow, heavier bill, compared to the Snowy Egret at right. Photo by Brian Sullivan.

Great Egret (nonbreeding), California, February. Note the mostly yellow, heavier bill, compared to the Snowy Egret at right. Photo by Brian Sullivan.

Cattle Egret, North Carolina, October. Unlike other herons, these egrets have short, stout bills. Photo by George Armistead.

Little Blue Heron, Florida, January. The bill of the Little Blue Heron is slightly stouter and droopier, and usually bicolored. Photo by Kevin Karlson.

Reddish Egret (immature), Bahamas, november. Immature Reddish Egret have dark bills and lores and can be confused with other herons. Note the rather long bill that has hints of pink at the base; over two years, the bill becomes drastically bicolored, with a pink base and dark tip. Photo by Brian Sullivan.

Great White Heron, Florida, March. Great White Herons have the largest, heaviest bills of this group, unmistakably hefty and yellow; compare especially with the slimmer-billed Great Egret. Photo by Brian Sullivan.

How to Identify White Herons