A Lost Bird?

I recently got my first real good camera and lens, the Canon EOS 50D and a Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM Lens with a Kenko PRO1d UV 67mm filter. Just after I got my camera, I went on holiday, and took some real awesome photos.

So I took some great photos of birds the one day, and came across a bunch of young egrets. After taking some photos, I saw an adult egret standing off to the side. I took 2 photos and drove off. After going through my photos on my laptop, I saw that this egret was in fact (according to my research) a Snowy Egret!!



But I am on the other side of the world! They are not supposed to be in Africa, are they?
Are their migratory patterns changing?

a reply to: IndependentOpinion

Birds can be notorious for getting places they don't usually go, especially if you were somewhere costal. So cool find and great pic

a reply to: grey9438

I took that photo 60 miles from the coast!

If you were in Africa then it was more likely to be a Little Egret. Snowy Egrets are smaller than Little Egrets ( no, honestly) but have same black legs and yellow feet. Difference is size and Snowy Egret has different lores ( region between the eyes and nostrils of birds ) which is bright yellow and yellow iris while the Little Egret has gray lores and paler iris.

The Little Egret was a rare bird in the UK when I was a kid, now they are quite common. Infact they have colonised the Bahamas and a vagrant to eastern North America where they can be easily confused with the Snowy Egrets. All in all beautiful birds.

a reply to: Hurky1

Difference is size and Snowy Egret has different lores ( region between the eyes and nostrils of birds ) which is bright yellow and yellow iris while the Little Egret has gray lores and paler iris.

The lores of the egret in my photo is yellow (maybe not bright, but that can because of my camera settings). That must mean that it is a Snowy and not a Little?

Nice pic. Thanks for showing it.

Egrets are so regal looking.

like hurky1 says - if it's in africa it's a little egret - looks good for one to me

a reply to: IndependentOpinion

link

no - little egrets show same colour (as in link) - i think they're only noticeably different colours in breeding plumage

a reply to: aynock

Separation from superficially similar Snowy Egret (E. thula) is generally poorly described in the literature.

The Snowy Egret (lower bird) has bright yellow lores and iris. In contrast, the Little Egret (upper bird) has gray lores and a paler iris. The forehead of the Little Egret seemed to slope more gradually accentuating its long-billed, long-headed jizz.

www.oceanwanderers.com...


(Photos I took)

a reply to: IndependentOpinion

birds can be very variable depending on age, season and condition

the big clue is where you saw it - imo it's either a little egret (egretta garzetta), or a dimorphic egret (egretta dimorpha), which is often classified as a subspecies of little egret - both are native to africa

if you are not convinced, join bird forum and post it in the id section - there are plenty of genuine experts on there

birdforum

a reply to: aynock

I am struggling to find an online article, but I saw a documentary that showed evidence that fish are now sighted in parts of the ocean where they are not supposed to be, after all the earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanoes erupting. This means that their on no confirmed location for many species of fish anymore, because their habitat is changing.

So back to birds. I the last 2 years I have seen many new bird species in my neighborhood that where never here before, proving in some way that the birds are also moving to new locations, expanding their natural habitat. So your statement on where I saw it is not a defining factor anymore.

But sure, I will look for more help in the link you gave.


Update:

Almost every site I looked at had a different description to a Little Egret in Breeding season. Here is 3 examples.

In the breeding season, the adult has two long nape plumes and gauzy plumes on the back and breast, and the bare skin between the bill and eyes becomes red or blue.

en.wikipedia.org...

Most of the year, the lores are bluish-grey, but in pre-breeding display they become bright yellow, orange, or even flushed bright red in excited birds.

www.birdforum.net...

When breeding, the bird acquires distinctive head, chest and back plumes and red lores.

www.heronconservation.org...

a reply to: IndependentOpinion

bird populations are always changing, with bird populations expanding and contracting their ranges - they are well monitored though - i'm sure there will be at least one detailed bird atlas for your geographical area that will outline population trends

there is always the possibility that a very unusual bird will turn up in an unexpected location but the general rule of bird id is if in doubt play it safe - many a beginner has been caught out

separating closely related species can often be extremely difficult with even experts disagreeing on the basis of a picture alone - there is generally no substitute for time spent in the field becoming familiar with the varieties of plumages closely related species can show in the real world - guide books and web sites often grossly simplify matters

if you want a definitive answer birdforum is your best bet imo