Snowy Egret

The Snowy Egret is a medium-sized heron-like bird that is white with a black slender beak and long black legs with bright yellow feet. The yellow feet make this bird easy to identify while it is flying. During the breeding season, the snowy egret grows long breeding plumage to attract mates. The facial skin goes from yellow to a reddish color and their yellow feet turn to an orangish color. The Snowy Egret is a great hunter and instead of staying still and waiting for their food to come to them (like many herons do) they are active and walk around trying their catch food. They will sometimes stir up mud with their feet and then stab their beak in the water to catch a fish. They eat mostly fish and crustaceans, but will sometimes eat snakes, frogs, worms, and insects. They usually forage for food along with other aquatic birds. Snowy Egrets are hunted by owls, hawks, raccoons, and poisonous snakes. They can live for around 17 years and they prefer to live in wetlands, ponds, and lakes. The Snowy Egrets plumage was in high demand in the late 1800s and was sold for 32 dollars per ounce. At that time that was twice the price of gold. They faced a serious decline in the population during that period, but thanks to early conservationists in 1910 a ban on the trade of feathers was put in place.

“Snowy Egret Identification, All about Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology.” , All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Snowy_Egret/id.

“Snowy Egret.” Chesapeake Bay Program, https://www.chesapeakebay.net/S=0/fieldguide/critter/snowy_egret.

“Snowy Egret: Bird Gallery: Houston Audubon.” Houston Audubon Society, https://houstonaudubon.org/birding/gallery/snowy-egret.html.