The ‘Tweener’
Little Blue Herons start out as all white juveniles and look very similar to snowy egrets. As adults, they become almost entirely blue with a small touch of maroon coloring.
When they are at the in between phase, transitioning from immature to adult little blues, they appear as a patchwork checkerboard of blue and white. These are the birds we often refer to as “tweeners”.
This afternoon I saw one flying above me over the salt marsh. Little blue herons are usually high flyers as opposed to skimming just over the reeds as the larger herons often will, so I ended up with these open blue sky shots.


What an exciting capture! Beautiful!
LikeLike
Thanks Vicky! This is one of my all time favorite bird looks when in this phase.
LikeLike
Fascinating to see these guys in their ‘tween’ stage.
LikeLike
It is fascinating and much different than many other birds.
LikeLiked by 1 person
He’s enjoying himself.
LikeLike
It was a nice day for a flight!
LikeLike
Thanks for the lesson and for sharing. I am always learning from your post.
LikeLike
What a beautiful little bird! So different from the adult. Thank you for this Phil, I have learnt yet more about your fantastic wildlife!
LikeLike
Back at you again! Hope I can stick with it. He’s a really nice looking teenager … love that coloring.
LikeLike
Lovely flight shots.
LikeLike
Beautiful shots…thanks Phil
LikeLike