As we drove through the refuge, I spotted a beautiful butterfly on a flower beside the road, and we stopped for photos. As I stepped out of the car, a very startled and annoyed Great Egret, which had previously gone undetected, let out a loud squawk and abruptly propelled itself from its concealed spot in the tall grass to the safety of a nearby tree. And there it sat waiting, all sullen and sulky, greatly annoyed that its peaceful afternoon had been disturbed.
“The unexpected may annoy us, but may also wake us up.” ~Scott Sanders
walking on a country road 
Beauty shots Rebecca! It was upset because it was going to gobble up that butterfly 🙂
Thanks, Wayne! It had definitely found a favorite hunting spot and was determined not to give it up.
These are great shots Rebecca – your pictures show that Egret’s sullen and sulky attitude perfectly, especially the wide-open beak shot! I’ve never heard an Egret’s squawk – is it as loud as a Great Blue Heron’s squawk?
Thanks, Linda! Egrets make harsh croaking sounds that can be a pretty good decibel when they are disturbed.
I just listened to some Egret sounds on all About Birds’ site and are right about those harsh sounds – let alone if they are disturbed!
Beautiful greatly annoyed Egret.
Thanks! It certainly knew how to express its displeasure.
I can almost hear the squawking. We drove to a refuge a couple weeks ago and saw a whole flock of these magnificent birds, lined up on the shoreline. They looked like a rack of bowling pins, standing side by side.
Sounds beautiful, Kathy. A flock of these lovely birds is quite a memorable sight.
I like his laugh!
It was a very expressive egret. 🙂
Nice captures of this beauty, Rebecca! It’s amazing how often they squawk like that, when they could just be quiet and unnoticed.
Thanks, Ellen. It was very clear about its displeasure with me, but it did end up posing nicely for me.
Beautiful photos! Excellent shot 👍
Thank you! 🙂
☺️