Snowy Egret
Egretta thula
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPelecaniformes (Pelicans, Herons, Ibises, and Allies)
- FamilyArdeidae (Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns)
- GenusEgretta (Small Egrets and Herons)
- SpeciesEgretta thula (Snowy Egret)
About the Snowy Egret
The snowy egret (Egretta thula) is a small white heron. The genus name comes from Provençal French for the little egret, aigrette, which is a diminutive of aigron, 'heron'. The species name thula is the Mapudungun term for the black-necked swan, applied to this species in error by Chilean naturalist Juan Ignacio Molina in 1782.
The snowy egret is the American counterpart to the very similar Old World little egret, which has become established in the Bahamas. At one time, the plumes of the snowy egret were in great demand as decorations for women's hats. They were hunted for these plumes and this reduced the population of the species to dangerously low levels. Now protected in the United States by law, under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, this bird's population has rebounded.
The snowy egret is native to North, Central and South America. It is present all year round in South America, ranging as far south as Chile and Argentina. It also occurs throughout the year in the West Indies, Florida and coastal regions of North and Central America. Elsewhere, in the southern part of the United States, it is migratory, breeding in California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Saguaro National Park
Tricolored Heron
Egretta tricolor
Great Egret
Ardea alba
Great Blue Heron
Ardea herodias
Green Heron
Butorides virescens
Black-crowned Night Heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
Cattle Egret
Bubulcus ibis
American Bittern
Botaurus lentiginosus
Roseate Spoonbill
Platalea ajaja
White Ibis
Eudocimus albus
White-faced Ibis
Plegadis chihi
American White Pelican
Pelecanus erythrorhynchos
Glossy Ibis
Plegadis falcinellus
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Snowy Egret in Saguaro National Park?
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Snowy Egret sighting in Saguaro National Park, based on 2,505 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Snowy Egret in Saguaro National Park?
December has the highest sighting rate for Snowy Egret in Saguaro National Park in our monthly data.