Wednesday, July 27, 2011

The three baby Cattle Egrets...and mama from behind

These are the same Cattle Egrets from the previous post. Mama left the nest for a few minutes to chase away a Night-crowned Heron, and when she returned, she faced the other direction, showing off her beautiful nuptial plumage.

A Cattle Egret nestling looks on as his mama jumps up to convince a Night-crowned Heron to move on to his own nest!





23 comments:

Elaine said...

Absolutely fantastic photos, Kelly! What a magical place to visit. I can see why you keep going back.

holdingmoments said...

Superb pictures Kelly. It feels like I'm right there in the nest with them.

TexWisGirl said...

when their feathers are spread like that, they always remind me of those filament lamps. :)

just wonderful shots.

Lois Evensen said...

Wonderful images! It is so neat to see them "at home with family." The babies are darling and the images are excellent as always.

Janice K said...

Those pictures are priceless, Kelly. I enjoy so much seeing things through the eye of your camera. Thank you!

NCmountainwoman said...

What a treat! Must have been really great to see them in person.

Caitlin said...

I just read about these guys in my bird book. Apparently they live in every continent (except Antarctica) I love their crazy hairdos!

grammie g said...

HI Kelly ...This so wonderful to see this family up close, and personal "well almost" lol
Beatiful birds!!
Grace

Wanda..... said...

The cute baby Egrets sure like to stay underfoot.

Unknown said...

great photos my friend! These egrets are so unique I love how different from other birds they are...the feathers are like fur almost. and the beak is so impressive
Keep up the good work

Montanagirl said...

Fabulous photos, Kelly! I'm so jealous. Would love to get photos like this of Cattle Egrets. However, I did see one of these at Bowdoin recently. He was so far away though it was ridiculous. Only good for a record shot.

Debbie said...

cutie pies....they sure do stick close to momma!!!

Randy Emmitt said...

Kelly,

I've tried more than a few times to get decent Cattle Egret photos. These photos are well beyond decent, KUDOs. I recall being in the Everglades watching the Cattle Egrets munching away at every Southern White butterfly in sight.

Dawn Fine said...

OH MY! I am loving the Cattle Egret photos!

Anonymous said...

Adorable babies, but mama's plumage - wow! Speaking of nuptial, it does look a bit like a wedding veil, doesn't it?

Banjo52 said...

I love all of these shots, as usual, but in the top one, the three chicks sort of make the hypotenuse of a triangle. Mom's got them beat in plumage, for sure, but I guess the babes are better at math.

FAB said...

Hi Kelly. I must say this and the recent posts are a superb series of the nesting Egrets ... exceptionally well presented.

P.S. Also good to hear the voice in the recent video.

Hope you and the family have a great weekend. Cheers FAB.

Krista/Ruca said...

Wow wow wow! Fantastic shots! There are lots of cattle egrets here in Portugal but any time I've ventured close to a nest it's been like trying to get close to royalty. Of course I back away respectfully, like any good citizen would.

Campbell Kids said...

Gorgeous photos! Wish I could see these in person!

myonlyphoto said...

Kelly these are beautiful photos of the Egrets. Thanks for sharing. Anna :)

Garden Lily said...

Those are beautiful shots. So the nest is low enough to view that way? I am imagining you perched on a ladder, catching those kind of shots!

Kelly said...

...thank you all for you kind words. It was so much fun watching this little family. I have hundreds and hundreds of photos of them. I was sitting on a hill across the mote about eye level with their nest. They do not nest high in the trees, and their location, although pretty far away, was open to viewing. Every now and then a Black-crowned Heron would land on a branch overhead and the branch would dip down obstructing the view, but usually, the family was out in the open. Everything is easy at the Pinckney Island rookery during nesting season!

cindyzlogic said...

SUPER fabulous captures, Kelly!!!