Another seasonal visitor to the Colorado plains and one of the prettiest. These guys are usually pretty skittish but sometimes you find a patient one, or in this case, have one fly right by you.
This one was cruising up the South Platte River a week or so ago, giving me a nice view in the early morning light.
The wispy plume of feathers snowy egrets get during mating season were, at one time, very valuable. In the late 19th century the feathers fetched more money per ounce than gold! Thankfully, humans wised up and reversed the trend of destroying these creatures simply for decoration and they have recovered nicely.
