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What Are Wading Birds? Why Is NATL Habitat Good for These Birds?

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What Are Wading Birds? Why Is NATL Habitat Good for These Birds? The White Ibis has bright The Little Blue Heron Little Blue Heron (Egretta cacrulea) White Ibis (Eudocimus albus) red legs and a long red can be found foraging bill. In flight, its black for small fish along wing tips are visible. It the border of marsh feeds on small aquatic wetlands. The bird animals by probing its captures prey, usually bill into the wetland fish, by stalking it and floor. It flies up to 15 quickly grabbing prey miles a day looking for in its bill. Juveniles are food and can live in completely white, and colonies of thousands of turn dark blue as birds in wetlands, coastal adults. marshes and swamps. Fact: The Little Blue Heron is the only heron that Fact: looks completely different as a juvenile versus as What are Wading Birds? an adult. Wading birds get their name from their long legs, which Photo: Will Elder Green Heron (Butorides they use to wade in shallow water to feed. The Snowy Egret is a virescens) small white heron, Why is NATL habitat good for these birds? around two feet tall, When feeding, the Green with black legs and Heron is intolerant of NATL provides wading birds with good wetland yellow feet. It lives in other birds. It is active at foraging habitat, water, and shelter. large inland and dusk and dawn, taking coastal wetland shelter during the day. It colonies with other feeds on small fish, frogs, wading birds. The and aquatic arthropods. bird feeds on fish, This bird is hard to spot as crustaceans, and it remains still waiting for insects by stalking prey to come by. Keep an prey in shallow ear out for its loud water. squawking “kyow”. Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) Photo: Marshall Iliff Fact: The Green Heron sometimes drops bait, such Fact: The Snowy Egret was hunted almost to as small leaves or twigs, onto the water’s surface to extinction in the early 1900’s for its beautiful attract prey, such as small fish. feathers which were used to make ladies’ hats. Wood Stork (Mycteria americana) The Wood Stork, with its bald, featherless head, feeds Great Egret (Ardea alba) on small fish. It breeds in The Great Egret nests in Florida in late winter, when colonies with other spec- dry spells cause fish to con- Great Blue Heron ies of wetland birds. It centrate in small pools. (Ardea herodias) feeds on fish, inverte- When hunting, the Wood brates, amphibians, rep- tiles, small birds, and Stork will leave its bill The Great Blue Heron is the largest heron to visit small mammals. When slightly open in the water NATL, usually measuring over four feet tall. The hunting, the Great Egret keeping very still. When a bird is characterized by a very long neck and is folds its neck back and fish touches its bill, it snaps largely gray. This heron prefers to nest in dead quickly extends it when shut in less than one hun- trees with other birds. The Great Blue Heron prey is spotted. dredth of a second! uses its neck and beak to feed by stabbing prey. Photo: USFWS Fact: The Wood Stork is the only stork that Fact: The Great Blue Heron makes a very deep Fact: The Great Egret is the symbol of the National breeds in the United States. croaking noise that sounds like "fraaahnk." Audubon Society, which was founded to protect birds from being killed for their feathers..
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