Texas also has its own Great White Heron (White Morph GBH)

MaestroMaestro Registered Users Posts: 5,395 Major grins
edited February 13, 2009 in Wildlife
This is very uncommon for Texas, but this year back in December, several birding forums I frequent had mentioned a sighting of a white morph great blue heron down in the Aransas Bay area near Rockport, Texas. I honestly only believed that Florida had this type of great blue heron.

So, after photographing the whooping cranes in the area, the boat operator and I took out in search of the white morph. Relatively quickly, my wonderful guide found it. It was very skittish but I did manage a few frames of this rarity. The diagnostics for identification are the thick great blue heron bill, the lighter colored legs, the tufts of plumage on the head and chest and overall size and body shape. It was much larger than the more slender great egret.

WhiteMorphGreatBlueHeron1.jpg

WhiteMorphGreatBlueHeron4.jpg

WhiteMorphGreatBlueHeron2.jpg

WhiteMorphGreatBlueHeron5.jpg

Comments

  • HarrybHarryb Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 22,708 Major grins
    edited February 12, 2009
    Very nice Stephen. That's a good catch. I've only seen a white morph a couple of times so fra.
    Harry
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  • Ric GrupeRic Grupe Registered Users Posts: 9,522 Major grins
    edited February 12, 2009
    Cool...and a nice catch! thumb.gif

    Somehow I thought the Texas style would be bigger.rolleyes1.gif
  • nrmdisknrmdisk Registered Users Posts: 182 Major grins
    edited February 12, 2009
    Very cool! I've only seen the traditional non-Morph GBH!
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  • stevehappstevehapp Registered Users Posts: 635 Major grins
    edited February 13, 2009
    nice,
    They look similar to our Great Egret.

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