I was told if the egret had black legs it was a "Great" egret and yellow legs, a "Cattle or Common" egret...but Snowy Egret works for me and I like it better as a name. To me, they are just as regal as the great blues.
It gets complicated in south Florida. Not only are there Great Egrets, Cattle Egrets and Snowy Egrets, the immature Little Blue Heron is white and the Reddish Egret and Great Blue Heron both have a white color morph - and I've seen Cattle Egrets with dark and yellow-ish legs:
Cattle Egret, Yolo County California:
Cattle Egret, Kaneohe Hawaii:
immature Little Blue Herons are the size of a Snowy Egret or Cattle Egret but have a bi-colored bill:
while the Snowy Egret has a dark bill and dark legs with yellow feet (sometimes obscured by mud):
The Great Egret is larger than the Snowy & Cattle Egrets & Little Blue Heron, has a yellow bill and dark legs:
no photos, but the white color morph of the Great Blue Heron has lighter-colored legs than the Great Egret and is somewhat bigger. The white color morph of the Reddish Egret has a bi-colored bill like the immature Little Blue Heron but more reddish, and a shaggier appearance.
