#egretta caerulea

Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea)

Snowy Egret (Egretta thula)

September 6, 2024

John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge, Tinicum, Pennsylvania

Photo: Becky Matsubara

"Despite its different last name, the Little Blue Heron is probably a close relative of the Snowy Egret. It looks much like a Snowy when it is young, but molts to a dark slate-blue plumage as an adult. Generally wary and hard to approach. Nests in colonies, sometimes of this species alone; in large mixed heronries, Little Blues tend to nest along the edges. Some of its largest colonies are in the lower Mississippi Valley, where it often nests in association with Cattle Egrets."

(x, x, x)

Little Blue Heron (Egretta Caerulea), Crooked Tree

Little blue heron (Egretta caerulea) in lagoon at sunrise

Little blue heron (Egretta caerulea)

The little blue heron is a small heron belonging to the family Ardeidae. These herons breed in the Gulf states of the United States, through Central America and the Caribbean south to Peru and Uruguay. It is a resident breeder in most of its range, but some northern breeders migrate to the southeastern US or beyond in winter. This species is about 64–76 cm long, with a 102 cm wingspan, and weighs 325 g.These herons prefer freshwater swamps and lagoons in the South, while on islands in the North they inhabit coastal thickets. They breed in sub-tropical and tropical swamps with mangrove vegetation, wetlands (bogs, fens, peatlands, etc.) and marine intertidal salt marshes. It eats fish, frogs, crustaceans, small rodents and insects.