Tricolored Heron Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesTricolored Heron
Adult
Medium-sized delicate-looking and rather colorful heron. Adults are a mix of blue-gray, purple, and white. The white belly and stripe down the neck are distinctive.
© Dorian Anderson / Macaulay LibraryTexas, November 10, 2019Juvenile
Long-necked heron with a sharp bill. Juveniles have a reddish neck with spots of reddish feathers on their wings and upper back.
© Rufus Wareham / Macaulay LibraryTexas, September 25, 2017Breeding adult
Builds messy stick nests in small trees and shrubs near fresh or saltwater.
© Benjamin Clock / Macaulay LibraryLouisiana, June 03, 2010Not all videos have sound
Breeding adult
Mostly dark except for its distinctive white belly and white wing linings. Flies with its neck tucked in and legs trailing behind.
© Luke Seitz / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 09, 2012Adult
Medium-sized slim heron with a long neck and bill. Breeding birds have small white plumes extending from the back of their head.
© John Whigham / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, December 13, 2016Breeding adult
Forages for small fish by running, stalking, or crouching with its neck tucked in before stabbing prey with its bill.
© Chris Wood / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, April 24, 2004Habitat
Found in estuaries, salt marshes, lagoons, swamps, freshwater marshes, and lake edges.
© Larry York / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, January 09, 2017Similar SpeciesLittle Blue Heron
Adult
Little Blue Herons have a blue-gray belly, whereas Tricolored Herons have a white belly.
© Etienne Artigau🦩 / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, March 06, 2017Similar SpeciesReddish Egret
Nonbreeding adult dark morph
Reddish Egrets lack the Tricolored Heron's white belly. They also have an entirely rusty-colored neck, whereas Tricolored Herons have a blue-gray, white, and purplish neck.
© James Rieman / Macaulay LibraryTexas, September 28, 2017Similar SpeciesGreat Blue Heron
Adult (Blue form)
Great Blue Herons are much larger and paler overall than Tricolored Herons. They also tend to forage more slowly with their head down that do Tricolored Herons.
© Janis Stone / Macaulay LibraryVirginia, March 01, 2017Rotate 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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