Hello Ben,
Let's first take the position that this is a Snowy Egret (I will describe why we do this following the ID discussion).
We ask ourselves, what are the standard features of an adult Snowy Egret?
Snowy Egret: Egret shape. Smallish to medium sized egret. Black legs with yellow feet. Well, we can see black legs in the photo, so we can keep moving (this doesn't rule out other species, but that's okay).
Snowy Egret: White, body-feathers. We see that this is also true, so we can keep moving.
Snowy Egret: At least a few (up to many) shaggy plumes on the back of the head. Yes. Little Egret would show two, thin, long plumes (they wouldn't appear fluffy or shaggy). Okay, we can keep moving with Snowy Egret.
Snowy Egret: Relatively long, straight, dark bill with yellow facial skin and light eye. We see that with this bird. The yellow facial skin is quite bright and even visible in these relatively dark photos. A Little Egret would typically show darker facial skin (gray lores is the typical ID description).
From this, we can conclusively say you have photographed a Snowy Egret. Nothing gave us suspicion to actually start considering a rarer species.
The key is, when trying to ID a bird you may not be the most comfortable with, start with the features of the most common species in your area. If the bird does not match up with those ID features, ask yourself if it is not just a variation of the more common species. Also ask if it may be that you don't have the best viewing conditions or if you are interpreting something incorrectly. If you can pass all these tests, turn to a less common species that you have at least some experience with. Finally, if you have no experience with the species, turn to those who do.
It's excellent to see new birders such as yourself wrangling with these ID challenges. If properly approached, they provide the training for an experienced birder of the future.
Best birding,
Sean Walters
Fort Collins, CO
> On Sep 5, 2017, at 7:52 AM, Ben S <benrmnp@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Only one person has replied via email, so I will put it more bluntly. Is this a LITTLE EGRET? The more I look thru my field guides and online, I think it is either a Little or a Snowy doing a fair impression. Really though, I want ID suggestions.
>
> Ben Sampson
> Centennial, CO
>
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