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Heron Kansas City Kansas (1 Viewer)

Owen Krout

Well-known member
United States
Pictures taken at Wyandotte County Lake May 11, 2015. What I thought to be a small heron on the opposite side of an inlet. Very shy, took to flight from human activity on it's side of the inlet. Lighting was heavily shaded but photo from two minutes prior of a Mallard in same lighting showed good color definition. My colors seem too bright for anything in the Audubon or Kansas Birds field guides.
 

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Hi Owen, yes, agree it is a Green Heron - one of my favorite birds! (Actually the ABA's bird of the year because its appreciated by so many.) Lots of fun to watch them.
 
Thanks all.

Hello Gretchen! The Guide to Kansas Birds ID photo doesn't look like this at all. Just by elimination and the Audubon Society field guide picture, which is somewhat better, that was the only possible that I had in mind, but it was so far off from the coloration either showed that I wasn't feeling good about it.
 
I would not use any of the state bird books. The Tekiela ones are so brief and exclude all migrants going thru the state. I have a Kansas book but only use it for info, not the pics. Use one of the national guides or the East version of Sibley or other E/W pair. All the birds in your (current, Kansas Missouri) area are in the East books. The West starts about the Rocky Mountains.

Night herons are difficult when younger, all kind of streaky brown. So is the juvenile Green heron.
 
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