Reddish Egret Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesReddish Egret
Nonbreeding adult dark morph
Medium-sized heron with a shaggy rusty-colored neck, slate-gray body, and heavy, two-toned bill.
© Fyn Kynd / Macaulay LibraryAlabama, December 28, 2019Breeding adult white morph
Small percentage of the population in Florida and the Gulf Coast are entirely white. Breeding adults have a pink bill with a black tip. Note shaggy-looking neck.
© Darren Clark / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, April 23, 2017Breeding adult dark morph
Has a very active foraging style compared to many herons—often runs through shallows to catch prey.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 01, 1997Not all videos have sound
Immature
Immature birds are grayish overall with a dark bill.
© John Whigham / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, December 12, 2016Juvenile white morph
Medium-sized shaggy-necked heron. Juvenile white morphs are entirely white with a dark bill.
© Patrick Maurice / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, November 06, 2016Breeding adult dark morph
Performs dancing displays during courtship with wings spread, plumes erect, and heads up. The base of the bill on breeding birds is pink.
© Peggy Rudman / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 15, 2017Breeding adult dark morph
Often puts its wings over its head when foraging to create a canopy and a shadow over the water, which may attract fish.
© Chezy Yusuf / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, March 03, 2017Habitat
Found foraging in coastal lagoons, ponds, and flats. Rarely found inland.
© Keely Ferrando / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 18, 2017Similar SpeciesLittle Blue Heron
Adult
Little Blue Herons are smaller than Reddish Egrets and have a purplish neck instead of a rusty-colored neck.
© Etienne Artigau🦩 / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, March 06, 2017Similar SpeciesLittle Blue Heron
Juvenile
Compared to white-morph Reddish Egrets, juvenile Little Blue Herons are smaller with yellow-green (not gray) legs and they lack the Reddish Egret's shaggy neck.
© Zak Pohlen / Macaulay LibraryIdaho, October 26, 2015Similar SpeciesTricolored Heron
Nonbreeding adult
Tricolored Herons have a white belly and neck stripe, unlike the dark-bellied Reddish Egret.
© Ryan Shaw / Macaulay LibraryYucatán, December 26, 2009Similar SpeciesGreat Egret
Adult
Great Egrets are larger and have a yellow bill, not the two-toned or grayish bill of white-morph Reddish Egret.
© Alex Lamoreaux / Macaulay LibraryPennsylvania, August 17, 2016Similar SpeciesSnowy Egret
Adult
Snowy Egrets are smaller than Reddish Egrets with a thinner, all-black bill and yellow feet.
© John Sutton / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, March 20, 2016Similar SpeciesGreat Blue Heron
Adult (blue form)
Great Blue Herons are larger than Reddish Egrets with a yellow bill and a dark cap, two features that Reddish Egrets lack.
© Janis Stone / Macaulay LibraryVirginia, March 01, 2017Similar SpeciesGreat Blue Heron
Adult (white form)
The white form of the Great Blue Heron has a yellow bill, whereas the white-morph Reddish Egret has either a bicolored bill or a grayish bill. Great Blues are also larger than Reddish Egrets.
© Alex Lamoreaux / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, May 18, 2012Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns(Order: Pelecaniformes, Family: Ardeidae)
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