Little Egret with black feet, Luzon (2 Viewers)

bittern · Mar 5, 2012

While I was in Luzon, Philippines, I noticed several Little Egrets with black feet, (not mud!). The Field Guide to the Birds of the Philippines, Kennedy et al, does not mention this nor had any local birders present noticed it before. A person present with a Japanese field guide found a mention of a ssp with black feet present in Java and the Philippines. Anybody know more about these birds that the Japanese guide referred to as negripes ?

Mike

Richard Klim · Mar 5, 2012

HeronConservation: Little Egret species account (includes Western Reef Heron & Dimorphic Egret).

Egretta garzetta nigripes (Temminck), 1880.

Nigripes... is similar to garzetta except its feet are black not yellow although occasionally having yellow soles. Nonbreeding lores are blue grey becoming red in courtship. The irises become red, but the feet remain black.

Nigripes is the Indonesian form. It nests in Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Lesser Sunda, Mollucas, Palau islands).

H&M3 and IOC include Philippines within range of nominate garzetta, but Clements includes Philippines within nigripes.

[H&M3 and IOC additionally include immaculata (breeding in northern and eastern Australia) within nigripes.]

MJB · Mar 5, 2012

bittern said:
While I was in Luzon, Philippines, I noticed several Little Egrets with black feet, (not mud!). The Field Guide to the Birds of the Philippines, Kennedy et al, does not mention this nor had any local birders present noticed it before. A person present with a Japanese field guide found a mention of a ssp with black feet present in Java and the Philippines. Anybody know more about these birds that the Japanese guide referred to as negripes ? Mike

Following on Richard's helpful (as always) post, nigripes is one of those well-chosen taxon names, to those who have some Latin, for it means 'black foot'... It might be assumed that other Little Egret subspecies all have yellow feet, but I haven't so far found any reference that confirms that across all populations! David Parkin and Alan Knox in the 2010 'The Status of Birds in Britain and Ireland', note that the relationships between the taxa of Little Egret and Reef Egret (gularis/schistacea populations) would benefit from a through molecular analysis. I would bet that present arrangements would be affected. Keep on looking at them!:t:
MJB

Dimitris · Mar 5, 2012

Hey all,

Does nigripes occur in Australia as well? If so I've seen birds with yellow soles, yellow feet and green legs (juveniles) and near wholly yellow beaks...

Cheers,

D.

Richard Klim · Mar 5, 2012

Dimitris said:
Does nigripes occur in Australia as well?

Immaculata occurs in Australia, but is treated as a synonym of nigripes by H&M3 and IOC.

Immaculata... Nonbreeding lores are yellow, an important distinction from garzetta. Legs and feet are black, with yellow soles. In courtship, the irises turn red, as do the lores before reverting to yellow. The feet remain black although the soles can turn red. The back plumes are the most spectacularly developed of the races.

cuckooroller · Mar 5, 2012

Mike,
If you can scare up some photos (maybe birding companions), I would love to look at them. I am always looking for new taxa ranging in Phils for the Records Committee. Sure they weren't intermedia (forgive me, but I have to ask)?

dnsallen · Mar 5, 2012

Hi Steve, Mike,
There's some video of breeding Little Egrets (also Great) in Mindanao here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMQpeZs3bOw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdBX8Q9b__0

However, I can't quite work out if they have yellow soles or entirely yellow feet. They don't seem to be very contrastingly yellow feet anyway.
I reported some suspected nigripes in Forktail 22 'New records and other observations of birds on the island of Tablas, Romblon province, Philippines'
Although 'Waterbirds of Asia' says 'Philippine and Indonesian race nigripes has black feet' I don't know of any firmer reference. I would guess that Mike's Japanese guidebook was a Japanese version of 'Waterbirds of Asia' (published in any case by Wild Bird Society of Japan).

bittern · Mar 5, 2012

Unfortunately as far as I am aware no photos were taken as the excitement of the day was a Black-tailed Gull amidst a flock Black-headed Gulls. I will check however. Yes it was certainly Waterbirds of Asia as I remember that quote. I am sure that it was not an intermedia and none of the experienced local birders thought it was either.

The location was in mangroves on Manila Bay

Mike

cuckooroller · Mar 5, 2012

Hi Des,
I looked at the first one so far. The first garzetta looks like the top of the feet are blackish, and some other views looks like the soles of the feet are yellowish (can't make out the superior aspect of the foot). For those not wishing to slog through the whole thing, the first views of garzetta start at about 6:25 into the clip. Too bad the photographers don't know how to pan correctly, very choppy and it makes it tough to see anything.

cuckooroller · Mar 5, 2012

Well, in the second clip you don't start seeing any white egrets until about 5:56. I saw another one that seemed to have just the soles of the feet yellowish. The garzetta (ca. 8:25) that they took the blood sample from appeared the normal yellow also on the superior aspect. I am starting to wonder if this feature (foot color) is constant enough to describe a subspecific taxon. I am wondering if there are hormonal influences of the foot color (and age-related) involved during the mating season

MJB · Mar 6, 2012

cuckooroller said:
I am starting to wonder if this feature (foot color) is constant enough to describe a subspecific taxon. I am wondering if there are hormonal influences of the foot color (and age-related) involved during the mating season

Bare-part colours tend to become more intense with the onset of gonadal size increase. Don't think that applies to us humans, though...:eek!:

Constancy of foot colour in Little Egret may occur only in a set of populations, something that can be proved/disproved only by sampling across breeding and non-breeding distributions.
MJB

cuckooroller · Mar 6, 2012

I expressed myself poorly. I know that there are hormonal influences that participate in the expression of secondary sex characteristics during the mating season. I was just wondering what other factors might be involved in the expression of the color of the feet, i.e. whether or not the description of biological subspecific taxa might not be determined in this case by other non-biological factors. To put it another way, I am wondering if race nigripes has a genetically justifiable basis attesting as to its validity.

Dimitris · Mar 6, 2012

Richard Klim said:
Immaculata occurs in Australia, but is treated as a synonym of nigripes by H&M3 and IOC.

Hmm feet aren't always black as shown by these pictures taken in Perth. The beak can also be yellow, at least in young birds. Many people thought that the first bird was an Intermediate, but the behaviour said otherwise.

dnsallen · Mar 21, 2012

We have some nice photos posted of the egrets at Tacurong in Mindanao.
http://birdphotoph.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=photo&action=display&thread=8428
The Little Egrets appear to show a mix of feet colours, with one pink-lored bird showing fully yellow feet and a bluish-lored bird showing at lest black uppers.

Little Egret with black feet, Luzon (2 Viewers)

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bittern

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Richard Klim

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Dimitris

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