Bird Calls Radio's Bird of the Day for Wednesday, July 27

The snowy egret is the Bird Calls Radio’s Bird of the Day. I couldn’t let summer pass without honoring a wader as the Bird of the Day. Waders are perhaps our most reliable sightings here in New England during the summer.

The snowy egret is more likely to be seen along the coastal areas of our region, while the great egret may be seen along the coast or inland. Birders often have difficulty with these two egrets. Snowy egrets are smaller with black legs and yellow feet. They also have black bills. Great egrets are taller, have all black legs and feet, and yellow bills.

Egrets are a pleasure to see any time of the year, but their breeding plumage is really a sight to behold. Unfortunately others felt the same way several decades ago and used many egrets were killed for their plumage, which was used to decorate hats. The killing of egrets was one of the rallying causes for the early Audubon movements.

Be sure to check out Bird Calls every Saturday from 3 to 4 p.m. on WSTC/WNLK AM1400/1350 (in S. CT and nearby NY) or www.wstcwnlk.com from anywhere in the world (where there’s Internet access, that is.) Thanks for checking in.