Imagine standing in shallow water — without moving — for long periods of time. Your toes spread out, firmly planted in squishy mud, your eyes focused on finding a tasty fish or frog.
Suddenly, you shove your head underwater, grab a passing treat with your mouth and swallow it whole.
“Most (herons) stalk their pray with stealth, hunting very slowly,” said Jim Lyons, an ecologist at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, Md.
There are 64 species of herons. Typically they have long legs, long toes, long necks and sharp bills that allow them to grasp or pierce rapidly moving prey.
Several kinds of herons can be spotted in the Washington, D.C., area. Some are called egrets. How do you tell these birds apart? Let’s examine what they look like and how they behave to see differences.
Great blue and little blue herons use the stand-and-wait method of hunting. Another species — the short, stocky green heron– uses twigs and insects to lure fish to the water’s surface.
The snowy egret has a different feeding style. Unlike their calmer cousins, snowy egrets often run around in the water, wings spread, feet stirring up mud, to startle their prey into moving, said Michael Lutmerding, a wildlife biologist at Patuxent. They are quite funny to watch.
Standing 38 to 54 inches tall, great blue herons are the largest herons in North America. Their graceful way of wading and flying seems contrary to the loud, prehistoric-sounding “FWAAUK” they make when disturbed.
An adult great egret is slightly smaller, 37 to 41 inches tall.
Little blue herons, as their name suggests, are much more petite. They measure 22 to 29 inches. Snowy egrets are slightly smaller. One of the tiniest herons you’ll see is the green heron, which is just 16 to 18 inches tall.
Look at the feathers, bills, legs and feet. Each species has a different color combination.
You’d think it would be easy to tell an egret from other herons because egrets are mostly white, while other herons usually have darker colors. But one species– the little blue heron — is tricky. The adults and juveniles of that species look completely different. Juvenile little blue herons aren’t blue. They’re almost all white, which causes people to confuse them with egrets. They gradually develop patches of blue as they mature to slate-blue adults.
The great egret and snowy egret are the two egret species seen in the Washington area. These beautiful birds are not endangered now, but in the late 1800s, they were almost hunted to extinction because their plumes were very popular decorations for women’s hats. But we can’t be sure egrets and herons will always be around, according to Jill Lee, a park ranger in Prince George’s County, Md. “The possibility of swampy areas being filled in for development could present a habitat problem in the future.”
