A Great White Egret fixes up his?/her? nest (both participate in the building) at the Audubon Park rookery in New Orleans. The rookery is a island in the bayou which makes a loop through the park. On the inner shore is a golf course. On the outer shore is a jogging path that runs around the park and an excellent observation bank for people and photographers to sit or stand (I am not implying, note you, that photographers and people do not overlap).Herons with white feathers are generally called egrets. Note the long s-shaped neck and the strong yellow bill (orangish in breeding season) made for stabbing prey. The long filamentous plumes on the falling down the side of the bird are breeding plumage called aigrettes. Also the green along the sides of the eye (lores) are a breeding sign for both males and females. The nests go to nearly the tops of the trees.
-- steve buser
6 comments:
Simply a fantastic series of bird pictures! I miss visiting this area. Thank you for some great views of this and the other parts of New Orleans!
This is a fantastic shot!!! Love coming here Steve ~~ You never dissapoint us!
This is a good post, Steve, and it contains a wealth of information. I would think the area you describe would be a kind of haven for photographers.
Beautiful detail of the plumes at the side of the bird - and interesting info.
Aigron,eigreto, aigrette, egreste, egret...
From Germanic to English via seevral French words, heron and egret are closely linked.
Very good pics, our great egrets are more and more numerous here but always very wild.
Thanks Steve. I learned some things today. I didn't know what the difference between herons and egrets was. Great action shot too.
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