View allAll Photos Tagged reddish
A little story folks so please bear with me.
This is the bird species that I consider my Florida Favorite, I never or very hardly see them in my area, hence the 400 mile+ trip to see and to photograph them when they are there. On Tuesday's trip there was only this one, and did not do any of the antics they do when feeding. Of course I was hoping for a ballet dancer and wing display poser, but had none of that from this one specimen we saw, but will return again I hope in the future and hope they are much more active and more than one.
Thanks to all for everything.
Reddish Egret
From eBird:
An entertaining heron to watch—known for sprinting, jumping, and spinning around in shallow water with its wings held up. Dark morph is more common than white morph. Adults are dark gray with a rusty head and neck. Immatures are paler grayish and rusty overall. In breeding plumage, the pink bill and blue lores can become shockingly bright. White morphs are similar to other egrets, but note behavior, grayish legs, and pink bill base (adults). Found exclusively near the coast, especially on mudflats. Typically uncommon, usually seen singly or in scattered small numbers. Dark morph most easily confused with Little Blue Heron, but Reddish Egret is larger and forages much more actively.
From the photographer - these are fun birds to watch and photograph - I found this one wading in the ocean looking for its first meal of the day as the sun was rising.
Reddish Egrets are my favorite of the Egrets. It's not just their good looks, it's their personality! They often shade the water while hunting, run, jump, fly and contort their bodies as they work hard to nab a meal trying its best not to be nabbed. This guy assumed a regal pose as he was about to touch down in the shallows.
Reddish Egret
BASIC DESCRIPTION (Cornell)
A medium to large heron of shallow salt water, the Reddish Egret comes in a dark and a white form. It is a very active forager, often seen running, jumping, and spinning in its pursuit of fish.
Conservation
There is little information on Reddish Egret population trends or numbers, but the species appears to be declining. The North American Waterbird Conservation Plan estimates a continental population of 6,000-10,000 breeding birds, rates the species about a 15 out of 20 on the Continental Concern Score, and lists it as a Species of Moderate Concern. Reddish Egret is on the 2014 State of the Birds Watch List, which lists bird species that are at risk of becoming threatened or endangered without conservation action.
Photographed at Fort De Soto Park, St. Petersburg, Florida. .
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Reddish are so much fun to observe and photograph. They often dance, jump, make erratic movements and shade the water with their large wings to see the fish better. Coming into breeding season their neck gets redder and the feathers more prominent. Here's one about ready to devour a fish it just nabbed.
Eastern Chipmunk.
Between 8 1/2 to 11 3/4 inches in length. Reddish brown above with a white belly. 1 white stripe bordered by 2 black stripes on sides ending at the rump. 2 white stripes on back much thinner than side stripes. Dark center stripe down the back. Pale facial stripes above and below the eyes. Tail brown on tip and edged with black. Prominent ears.
The Eastern Chipmunk's habitat includes open deciduous woodlands, forest edges, brushy areas, bushes and stone walls in cemeteries and around houses.
They range from southeastern Canada and the north-eastern U.S. east from North Dakota and eastern Oklahoma and south to Missisippi, northwest Carolina and Virginia.
Kensington Metropark, Livingston County, Michigan.