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The Snowy Egret page contains 60 images and composites taken in
Southern California and on Sanibel Island off the Gulf Coast of Florida.
It includes images detailing an unusual Snowy Egret hunting technique.
Click an image to open a larger version.
Use your back button to return to this page.
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Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
The Banner below leads to the Wildlife Collections page where a Gallery can be selected.
Images can be found in the following Collections (Direct Links)
Birds Collections: Egrets & Herons
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Snowy Egret
The Snowy Egret is a medium-sized Heron with white plumage, a gray-black bill,
yellow eyes and lores (bare skin between the eyes and the upper base of the bill),
black, yellow-green, or black-and-yellow-green legs, and yellow or yellow-green feet.
Mature birds have black legs, younger birds have black-and-yellow-green legs. In the
breeding season they grow long white plumes and the feet and lores turn a red-gold.
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 0251
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 0240
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A Snowy Egret fluffs its feathers while searching the waters of the Gulf for
its breakfast at sunrise, just off of Bunch Beach on Sanibel Island, Florida.
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 0236
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 0182
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Snowy Egrets are medium-sized birds with white plumage, yellow eyes and lores (skin between eyes and bill),
yellow or yellow-orange feet, a slender gray-black bill, and black, yellow-green, or black-and-yellow-green legs.
They eat crustaceans, aquatic invertebrates and small vertebrates, insects, small reptiles, and lots of fish.
Snowy Egret Sunrise 0252
A Snowy Egret poses for a portrait at sunrise in the shallow Gulf waters off Sanibel Island.
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Snowy Egret 1717
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Snowy Egret 3379
An early afternoon portrait at Bolsa Chica wetlands.
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Achieving a correct exposure on a bright white bird in front of a dark background is challenging.
The tendency is to try to hold all highlights, which results in underexposure of the scene and the bird.
Underexposure can be recovered, but it results in reduced color saturation and noise in dark areas.
I find it best to allow the highlights which are fully saturated to the eye to fully expose to white, but
you dance a fine line between optimum exposure and overexposure with loss of feather detail.
Snowy Egret 3583
A Snowy Egret in mid-afternoon at Bolsa Chica wetlands, standing in dark shallows of the Main Canal.
It requires careful attention to avoid overexposure, losing feather detail and the reflections off of the water.
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Snowy Egret 3390
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Snowy Egret 3416
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A profile portrait and a rear-quarter shot of a Snowy Egret alongside the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica.
Side-lit in the early afternoon, the shot at left is 1/6 stop overexposed, and the one at right is 1/3 under.
Even one third of a stop of underexposure affects color saturation, although it is the safer exposure.
The image on the left is barely overexposed, and you can see that brighter feather detail is at risk.
Snowy Egret 3663
A Snowy Egret patrolling the dark shallows of the Main Canal near the boardwalk bridge in mid-afternoon.
This difficult exposure is spot-on, and all of the feather detail and reflected light from the water is retained.
I created the composition by waiting for the bird to be framed with its head in the arch in the background.
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Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
The Banner below leads to the Wildlife Collections page where a Gallery can be selected.
Images can be found in the following Collections (Direct Links)
Birds Collections: Egrets & Herons
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Snowy Egret Flight X2764
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Snowy Egret Flight HS4593
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Snowy Egrets in flight can be extremely challenging for several reasons. Snowy Egrets fly much faster
than Great Egrets and most other large birds, and their all-white bodies do not have much contrast for
the camera to focus on. You have to know the proper exposure and set it manually, or calculate the EV
offset for the meter very rapidly, while locking focus and tracking on a shadow or dark spot on the bird.
If you try to acquire a focus lock on the white part of the bird, or try to track and your focusing reticle
slips to a white area, you will lose focus and the shot will be useless. If you overexpose 1/3 stop,
you lose feather detail. You should shoot at a time which yields an interesting wing position.
If you mess any of this up, the shot is useless. It is very easy to make a mistake. Trust me.
Snowy Egret Flight HS4713
An exquisite Snowy Egret flight shot, taken over the dark waters of the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica wetlands.
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Snowy Egret Flight Study
A two-shot composite of a Snowy Egret in flight over Sanibel Island, Florida.
An exposure like this is far easier (shooting from below into a light sky)
but there is less detail on the bird because of the greater distance.
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Snowy Egret Landing HS4774
A Snowy Egret performing a coveted ‘full-parachute’ landing at Bolsa Chica with crest and plumes extended.
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Snowy Egret Sunset Flight HS6188
A Snowy Egret floats across Ballona Creek in absolutely magnificent light at sunset.
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Snowy Egret Sunset Flight HS6185 M
Salmon pink light filters through the wings of a Snowy Egret flying across Ballona Creek at sunset.
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Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
The Banner below leads to the Wildlife Collections page where a Gallery can be selected.
Images can be found in the following Collections (Direct Links)
Birds Collections: Egrets & Herons
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Snowy Egret Hunting
Sepulveda Wildlife Refuge
The Snowy Egret shown at right displayed a rather unusual foraging technique, unique in my experience.
Most of the Snowy Egrets I have seen have used the typical techniques: wading in shallow water to find and capture prey, or standing on the bank or on a rock over the water to find prey, which they will then pounce on or strike at depending on how close they are to the prey. Sometimes they run and dance in shallow water, striking on the run when they stir up a fish.
Some Snowy Egrets take advantage of prey herded towards them by other wading birds, who drive fish away when they are hunting, but apparently there is another technique the Snowy uses occasionally: flying very slowly over the water, nearly hovering in some cases, and striking on prey while in flight. I have seen quite a number of Snowy Egrets hunting, but this behavior was only seen once, by this bird.
This was absolutely fascinating, and when I told the friend who was shooting with me at Sepulveda that day, he refused to believe me until I showed him the images. I probably wouldn’t have believed it either if I had not seen it, because it was so different than anything either of us had seen before during many shooting sessions, in which we had seen hundreds of hunting Egrets and Herons.
Below are nine images of this interesting hunting behavior and a preview of the XXXL Composite showing 20 images from the ‘dip-fishing’ sequence.
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Snowy Egret X5399
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Snowy Egret Hunting X5416
The Snowy Egret takes off for a ‘dip-fishing’ adventure at Sepulveda Wildlife Refuge.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X5419 M
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The Egret flew slowly with its feet barely over the water.
Snowy Egret Hunting X5420
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Snowy Egret Hunting X5425
... and then, suddenly, it would STRIKE!
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Snowy Egret Hunting X5442
Note the interesting reflection pattern underneath the wing on this striking image.
(sorry about the pun... I simply could not resist)
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Snowy Egret Hunting X5443 M
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Snowy Egret Hunting X5455 M
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Trolling away from a strike, the Snowy returns to its elegant slow flight, dragging its feet in the water.
Snowy Egret Hunting X5456
A Snowy Egret hovers over the water in an absolutely spectacular foraging technique.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X5466 M
“So... did you get that?”
The Snowy looks a bit like a wasp in flight at the end of the hunting sequence.
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Snowy Egret Hunting XXXL
Click the image above for a 1500 x 996 preview of the XXXL Composite (11290 x 7500 pixels).
20 images of a Snowy Egret ‘dip-fishing’ sequence. The XXXL image makes a 4 to 5 foot matte print.
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Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
The Banner below leads to the Wildlife Collections page where a Gallery can be selected.
Images can be found in the following Collections (Direct Links)
Birds Collections: Egrets & Herons
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Dancing Snowy Egret X0693
A Snowy Egret dancing in the shallow waters at the edge of the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica wetlands.
This is one of their common hunting techniques. They stir up the bottom and catch any disturbed prey.
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Snowy Egret HS4620
In this image, a Snowy Egret is standing in shallow water at the edge of the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica.
The Egret waves its yellow foot from side to side as a lure to fish, which it will grab the moment they arrive.
Achieving an exposure which yields feather detail of the white bird against the
dark background of the water is challenging. It is easy to lose feather detail if you
overexpose by as little as 1/3 stop, and underexposure yields poor color saturation.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X4478
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Snowy Egret Hunting X4472
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A Snowy Egret wades in the Bolsa Chica canal, watching for fish that are swimming by.
Snowy Egret Hunting X0751
A Snowy Egret prepares to enter the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica.
Note the bright yellow-orange feet, characteristic of the Snowy Egret.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X0755c
A detail crop of the head and neck of a Snow Egret during a slow strike.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X0761
The water of the Main Canal reacts in a spectacular fashion in this high speed image of the end of a strike.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X0763
A Snowy Egret, resplendent in its breeding plumes at the edge of the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica.
Snowy Egrets were hunted to near-extinction in the late 1800s and early 1900s for mating plumes,
which were used as decorations for women’s hats. Their feathers were more prized than those of
Great Egrets. Protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (1918), populations have recovered.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X0770
A Snowy Egret takes a close look at the waters of the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X0774 M
A Snowy Egret snatches a marine invertebrate out of the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica.
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Snowy Egret Hunting X0812
A Snowy Egret shakes water off its prey in front of a group of Dowitchers at Bolsa Chica wetlands.
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Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
The Banner below leads to the Wildlife Collections page where a Gallery can be selected.
Images can be found in the following Collections (Direct Links)
Birds Collections: Egrets & Herons
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Little Blue Heron Juvenile Snowy Egret Comparison 0165, 0232
The Juvenile Little Blue Heron is quite similar to the Snowy Egret.
As you can can see from the comparison composite above, the primary differences
between the Juvenile Little Blue Heron and the Snowy Egret are in the bill, the lores
(the unfeathered skin above the base of the bill, in front of the eye) and the leg color.
The Juvenile Little Blue Heron has a pinkish-gray bill with a black tip, fading to dark
gray on the upper part towards the base of the bill, and light yellow-green lores. The
Juvenile Little Blue Heron’s legs are a bit darker yellow-green shade than the lores.
The Snowy Egret has a black bill, bright yellow lores, and yellow-green and black legs.
An 800 x 1290 pixel version of Snowy Egret Sunrise 0232 (the right image) is below.
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 0232
A Snowy Egret struts along Bunch Beach on Sanibel Island, Florida.
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 0249
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 0245
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A Snowy Egret standing at the edge of the Gulf on Sanibel Island at sunrise.
Snowy Egret Sunrise 0142
A Snowy Egret patrols the waters of the Gulf off Bunch Beach on Sanibel Island.
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 1885
As a wave crashes over his legs, a Snowy Egret looks out into the Gulf
during a magnificent Florida sunrise off Bunch Beach on Sanibel Island.
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 1888 M
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Snowy Egret Sunrise 1893 M
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A Snowy Egret struts through the foamy waters of the Gulf of Mexico
during a spectacular Florida sunrise off Bunch Beach on Sanibel Island.
Snowy Egret Sunrise 0207
“So... what do you think of the light in Florida?”
Personally, I think that long-beaked birds look
comical in a head-on shot, and he is no exception.
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Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
The Banner below leads to the Wildlife Collections page where a Gallery can be selected.
Images can be found in the following Collections (Direct Links)
Birds Collections: Egrets & Herons
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Snowy Egret Sunset HS5120 M
A Snowy Egret patrols along the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica in the warm light of a Pacific sunset, with its crest and breeding plumes stirred by an onshore breeze.
At right, a Snowy Egret struts along the Main Canal, walking over earlier tracks in the sediment.
The light on the Pacific coast is different than that of Florida’s Gulf Coast, possibly due to a difference in humidity.
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Snowy Egret Tracks HS5130
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Snowy Egret Sunset HS5141
A Snowy Egret surveys its territory in the magnificent light at sunset, beside the Main Canal at Bolsa Chica.
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Snowy Egret with Prey Sunrise 0184
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Snowy Egret with Prey Sunrise 0178
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A Snowy Egret and his breakfast after successful strikes at sunrise in the waters of the Gulf off Sanibel Island.
Snowy Egret with Prey Sunrise 0227 M
A Snowy Egret fluffs his plumes in delight at his success in capturing a fish at sunrise off Sanibel Island.
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Snowy Egret with Prey Sunrise 0186 M
Detail of a Snowy Egret with prey at sunrise. Note the somewhat filmy look to the eye. This is because the
Egret has closed his nictating membrane (a clear eyelid the bird uses to clean, protect and moisten the eye).
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Snowy Egret Losing Prey Sunrise 0190
A gull dives on a fish, startling the Snowy Egret and causing him to drop his hard-earned breakfast.
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Snowy Egret Losing Prey Sunrise 0192
The Snowy was so startled that he didn’t even try to recapture his fish. No big deal... he
just walked a few steps closer to the pier and caught another fish in less than 30 seconds.
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Snowy Egret Fish Story XXL
A 1500 x 1079 preview of the XXL Composite (5483 x 3943).
The Fish Story starts at the upper left and continues clockwise.
I can hear it now... this fellow goes to his friends and tells them:
“I had this great fish. Really, I did... I showed it to everyone. Then this darned seagull
flew right in front of my face and splashed down next to me, making me drop my fish.
No, really! I’m not making this up. It was a great fish. You’ve got to believe me! (sigh)”
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Snowy Egret with Prey Sunrise 0200
The Egret snatched a new fish out of the waters of the Gulf next to the Bunch Beach Pier in under 30 seconds.
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Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
The Banner below leads to the Wildlife Collections page where a Gallery can be selected.
Images can be found in the following Collections (Direct Links)
Birds Collections: Egrets & Herons
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Click the Display Composite above to visit the Great Egret, Cattle Egret and Reddish Egret page
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Click the Display Composite above to visit the Great Blue Heron and Little Blue Heron page
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Click the Display Composite above to visit the Night Herons, Green Heron and Tricolored Heron page
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Click the Display Composite above to return to the Egrets and Herons index page
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