Bird name:

Tricolored Heron

Egretta tricolor

Order

CICONIIFORMES

Family

Bitterns, Herons and Egrets (Ardeidae)

Code 4

TRHE

Code 6

EGRTRI

ITIS

174826

Breeding Location:

Lakes, Marshes, freshwater, Swamps, Rivers

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Colonial

Breeding Population:

Declining

Egg Color:

Light blue green

Number of Eggs:

3 - 4

Incubation Days:

21 - 25

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Made of sticks and lined with fine materials.

Migration:

Some migrate

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General

Tricolored Heron: Medium-sized heron with blue-gray upperparts, head, neck and wings, paler rump, white stripe on foreneck, and white belly. Also has white plumes on back of head and rust-brown plumes on lower neck and back during the breeding season. Bill and legs are olive-brown. Sexes are similar. Winter adult and juvenile lack plumes and have rust-brown wash over neck, upper breast, upper back, and wings.

Range and Habitat

Tricolored Heron: Breeds in southeastern New Mexico and Texas, on the Gulf Coast, and along the Atlantic coast north to southern Maine (rarely). Spends winters along the coast from Texas and New Jersey south to northern South America and West Indies. Preferred habitats include swamps, bayous, coastal ponds, salt marshes, mangrove islands, mudflats, and lagoons

Breeding and Nesting

Tricolored Heron: Three or four light blue green eggs are laid on a platform nest made of stems and twigs, occasionally lined with grass; nests in mixed-species rookeries on coastal islands, although some may nest in swamp forests. Both parents incubate eggs for about 21 days.

Foraging and Feeding

Tricolored Heron: Prey consists primarily of small fish, but includes crustaceans, reptiles, amphibians, insects, snails, and other invertebrates. Often stands or wades belly-deep in water; crouches with legs bent when stalking in shallows.

Vocalization

Tricolored Heron: Emits guttural croaks and squawks.

Similar Species

Tricolored Heron: Little Blue Heron is stockier, lacks white underparts, and has browner neck and head.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

Belly

The ventral part of the bird, or the area between the flanks on each side and the crissum and breast. Flight muscles are located between the belly and the breast.

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

Foreneck

Also called the jugulum or throat patch, it is located on the front of the neck.

Plumes

Large, conspicuous, showy feathers.

Rump

The area between the uppertail coverts and the back of the bird.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America