Mark B Bartosik
Well-known member
Hi All,
There are a few known instances of hybridization between heron species so if one keeps looking those hybrids are probably one’s best chance to find one. In the past 10 years I have seen three of them in Texas; found two and one was reported in an area I visit several times a year, so it was easy to run into it.
It is hard if not impossible to identify parents without DNA studies, but one can always speculate and makes presumptions. Perhaps some people are interested in this subject and will share their thoughts and ideas.
1) Night-Heron hybrid seen for a few weeks on Texas Central Coast Mustang Island last year – quite interesting bird.
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958543
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958541
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958545
2) Egret hybrid – Upper Texas Coast Bolivar area; perhaps a few extra words about it
Here to see the size comparison - much larger and taller (even with much shorter, deformed neck) than Reddish Egret so about body size of Great Blue Heron; photos were taken from the same distance but these two birds were too far apart from each other to have them fit in one frame (both photos are not cropped)
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958527
Closeup of the deformed neck with skin and spine visible; anybody has an idea if this is a birth defect (perhaps a result of hybridization) or there is a possible another explanation.
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958529
head closeups
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958528
On the wing
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958526
REEG vs HYBRID vs GBHE vs GREG
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958530
3) Little Blue Heron hybrid Upper Texas Coast Houston area
http://www.pbase.com/mbb/image/137820021
http://www.pbase.com/mbb/image/137820028
The whole sets are in this folder:
http://pbase.com/mbb/ardeidae__hybrids
Hope some will have fun trying to figure out who mated with who.
Cheers,
Mark
There are a few known instances of hybridization between heron species so if one keeps looking those hybrids are probably one’s best chance to find one. In the past 10 years I have seen three of them in Texas; found two and one was reported in an area I visit several times a year, so it was easy to run into it.
It is hard if not impossible to identify parents without DNA studies, but one can always speculate and makes presumptions. Perhaps some people are interested in this subject and will share their thoughts and ideas.
1) Night-Heron hybrid seen for a few weeks on Texas Central Coast Mustang Island last year – quite interesting bird.
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958543
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958541
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958545
2) Egret hybrid – Upper Texas Coast Bolivar area; perhaps a few extra words about it
Here to see the size comparison - much larger and taller (even with much shorter, deformed neck) than Reddish Egret so about body size of Great Blue Heron; photos were taken from the same distance but these two birds were too far apart from each other to have them fit in one frame (both photos are not cropped)
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958527
Closeup of the deformed neck with skin and spine visible; anybody has an idea if this is a birth defect (perhaps a result of hybridization) or there is a possible another explanation.
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958529
head closeups
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958528
On the wing
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958526
REEG vs HYBRID vs GBHE vs GREG
http://pbase.com/mbb/image/170958530
3) Little Blue Heron hybrid Upper Texas Coast Houston area
http://www.pbase.com/mbb/image/137820021
http://www.pbase.com/mbb/image/137820028
The whole sets are in this folder:
http://pbase.com/mbb/ardeidae__hybrids
Hope some will have fun trying to figure out who mated with who.
Cheers,
Mark
