Families: Ardeidae, Ciconiidae, Phoenicopteridae, Threskiorithidae
Wading birds are long legged, long necked, long billed birds that include herons, egrets, flamingos, ibis, bitterns, spoonbills, and storks. Many of the wading birds forage by wading in shallow water but not all do that exclusively, some wading birds forage in pastures, wet meadows, on beaches, fresh and saltwater shorelines, grassy slopes, mudflats or from vegetation in marshes.
Last August I was able to spend time observing and photographing this juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron stalking prey at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
I thought a comparison of adult and juvenile White-faced Ibis might be interesting for those of you who aren't familiar with this western species of ibis.
The Snowy Egrets of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge never fail to delight me with their bright white plumage, golden feet, bright yellow lores and feathery plumes.
This image of a solitary Snowy Egret in low light is simple but I find the simplicity of it appealing.
These Little Blue Herons on the hunt were both taken at Fort De Soto in two different tidal lagoons.
I can recall vividly the morning I photographed this Roseate Spoonbill in a lagoon with a young mangrove by its legs at Fort De Soto County Park.
On a January morning in 2013 I photographed this juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron on ice for about a half an hour at Farmington Bay.
I was quite pleased to find this Great Egret resting in snow yesterday while I was photographing other birds at the WMA.
On the first of September I was at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge when I spotted a Black-crowned Night Heron hidden in the phragmites.
The light was beautiful yesterday morning at Farmington Bay WMA and I was able to photograph a few species if birds including this juvenile Northern Harrier flying over the marsh.
Seven years ago I could be found most often walking along the Gulf of Mexico at Fort De Soto County Park's north beach in search of birds to photograph.
Farmington Bay's Snowy Egrets were the birds I photographed most yesterday because they were cooperative and because they were active, very active.
On a clear day this Great Blue Heron image would have shown the Promontory Mountains in the distant background instead of the dull gray seen here.
And this one of the Long-tailed Weasel at the side of the road that shows its face, dark eyes and cute rounded ears but it also shows that the weasel appears to be injured on the left of its nose.
In my post yesterday I mentioned that the Snowy Egrets that I photographed at the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge were avoiding a juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron, this is that heron.
There was lots of bird activity yesterday at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and a flurry of Snowy Egrets kept things interesting early in the morning.
I headed up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday morning and I am very glad I did because of the wonderful birds I saw.
Mornings this time of the year at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge are cool, delightful and early on the subjects can appear to glow from the soft light like this Snowy Egret.
I'm hoping to add images of Snowy Egrets to my portfolio this summer that might be taken at Farmington Bay WMA or up north at Bear River National Wildlife Refuge.
I have always loved the pinks of the Roseate Spoonbills and the evening sun just made the colors even more delightful looking.
I picked this Great Blue Heron image to post today because when I took the photo it was bright and sunny.
The first bird I photographed on my recent trip to Idaho and Montana was a White-faced Ibis in full breeding plumage.
The best light can be fleeting though so it is always best to photograph as much as you can during the "golden hours".
The Reddish Egrets I photographed that May morning were busy hunting and paid me almost no attention as they went about their daily business of find prey.
Maybe when the weather clears tomorrow I'll be able to get back out Farmington Bay to photograph more birds.
After posting Great Blue Heron images yesterday I decided to post images of Great Egrets which are also a large wading bird species this morning.
Photographing this bird brought back memories of a day I spotted a Great Blue Heron struggling because it was caught in a trotline in the Chattahoochee River in Georgia
So, is this the year that the Grinch stole winter?
As common as Great Blue Herons are throughout North America I am always happy to photograph these prehistoric looking birds.
Last December I photographed this Great Blue Heron as it hunkered down against the brutal cold at the edge of the water in a marsh.