OK, it’s cold again, but not (yet) so cold as the worst we’ve seen this month so I think we can afford to get “subtropical” today.

Chuck Tague photographed this reddish egret in the subtropics between the 35th parallel and the Tropic of Cancer, specifically in Florida.

Reddish egrets (Egretta rufescens) are found from Florida and the U.S. Gulf Coast, down both coasts of Central America to the Caribbean edge of South America.  But they’re not found everywhere.  They only fish in shallow saltwater so they’re restricted to specific locations, always coastal.  Click here for their range map.

Some reddish egrets are actually white but most have this distinctive reddish head, gray body and black-tipped pink bill.  They’re easy to identify if you watch them hunt.  They jump and dart like crazed dancers with their wings open.

Don’t take this beautiful bird for granted.  It’s listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List because “despite its large range it occupies a restricted habitat and is patchily distributed.”

If you’re at the coast within its range, take the opportunity to look for a reddish egret.

(photo by Chuck Tague)