Reddish Egret

How to find it

Concentrate on the Pacific coast, where the species is usually seen. Scan open, shallow flats and river mouths, such as the area around Tárcoles, for a heron that dashes, lurches and spins. Watch for wing-spreading and frantic running before you study plumage. The southern coast around Ojochal has produced records too. Boat trips in the Sierpe mangroves on the South Pacific coast are a good way to see herons and egrets in general, though that is not a confirmed spot for this species. Plan a visit between November and March.

How to recognise it

This is a medium-sized heron with two color forms, so check each bird carefully.

Dark form: slate-gray body with a shaggy rusty head and neck.

White form: all white.

Breeding adults: a two-toned pink bill with a black tip, and slaty blue-gray legs. The bill pink can fade outside the breeding season.

Young birds: plain gray-brown, often with brownish or rufous tinges on the head and neck. Their bill and legs are dark, and their eyes are pale.

These descriptions come from the species across its whole range, not from Costa Rica alone.

Behaviour and diet

The Reddish Egret feeds very actively. It runs, hops, flaps and stirs with its feet in shallow water. It often spreads its wings to shade the water and spot fish.

Its diet is fish, frogs, crustaceans and insects.

Watch for the heron that dashes, lurches and spins on open flats. Behavior is often the quickest way to tell it from other herons.

Where it lives

Across its range it is rarely seen away from the coast. It favors shallow coastal flats, estuaries and lagoons. In Costa Rica's regional context it uses mangroves, sea coasts and islands.

In Costa Rica it is usually seen on the Pacific coast, with occasional records elsewhere. Our records are from Tárcoles, a Pacific coast river mouth area, and from Ojochal on the southern Pacific coast. The Museo Nacional heron catalogue lists it as migratory, found from sea level to 1,200 m.

When to see it

Migrants reach Costa Rica generally in November and leave by the end of March. The Tárcoles photo dates from December 2020 and the Ojochal photos from February 2024.

Similar birds

The dark form can be mistaken for Tricolored Heron or Little Blue Heron. The Reddish Egret is bigger and taller, and forages in a more frantic way. The white form has a two-toned bill. It differs from the smaller Snowy Egret, which has yellowish lores and yellow feet.

Names and lore in Costa Rica

The AOCR Spanish name is Garceta Rojiza. Other Spanish names are garza piquirrosa and, in the Museo Nacional heron pages, Garza rojiza.

Status and conservation

The AOCR lists the Reddish Egret in Costa Rica only as a migrant (M), and BirdLife International rates the species Near Threatened.

Photography tips

Its hunting gives you action to frame: wings spread to shade the water, sudden leaps and spins on open flats. Look for it on shallow coastal flats and river mouths on the Pacific side.