Distribution

Breeding Range

Figure 1 . Strictly coastal. On Pacific coasts, found in Mexico, along both coasts of Baja California (north to San Quintín and Guerrero Negro on Pacific side and north to I. San Luís in Gulf of California; Wilbur 1987), and along coast of Sonora (I. Huivulai in Estero Tóbari; Palacios and Mellink 1995, see also Russell and Monson 1998), Sinaloa (I. Las Tunas; Am. Ornithol. Union 1998), Colima (possibly; Schaldach 1963), and Oaxaca (Minitán and Ventosa east to border with Chiapas; Binford 1989). On Atlantic coasts, found from s. Florida (as far north as Brevard Co. [Paul et al. 1979], south to Keys and on Gulf Coast north to Hillsborough [Paul et al. 1975], Pinellas [RTP], and Citrus [Stevenson and Anderson 1994] Cos.); Alabama (Cat I., Mobile Co.; Jackson and Cooley 1979, Dindo and Marion 1986); Louisiana (vicinity of Chandeleur Sound; Wiedenfeld and Swan 2000); Texas (Cameron to Chambers Cos.; Oberholser 1974); and into Mexico (Tamaulipas [Laguna Madre]). Also on coast of Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico (including offshore islands) and n. Belize (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998) and in West Indies, Bahamas, Cuba (including Isle of Youth), and formerly Jamaica and Hispaniola (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998, Raffaele et al. 1998). Probably coastal Colombia (based on sighting there of juveniles with down on head among 104 individuals on 27 Jun 1974 at Manaure; Sprunt 1976) and islands of s. Caribbean (e.g., Bonaire; Spaans 1974). See also Howell and Webb 1995 .

Winter Range

Generally same as breeding range along Pacific coast. Expands north regularly (but rarely) to n. Gulf of Baja (Mellink et al. 1997) and sw. California (40 records, mostly San Diego and Orange Cos. [Garrett and Dunn 1981] and as far north as Monterey Co. [Small 1994]) and south as far as Costa Rica and Belize. Some withdrawal southward from Gulf Coast of U.S. and from Florida (Stevenson and Anderson 1994). In West Indies, may expand to Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico, with some wintering south to north coast of Venezuela (also Netherlands Antilles east to Margarita I.; Am. Ornithol. Union 1998).

Other Records

Spring and summer wanderings, including postbreeding dispersal, result in occasional sightings of vagrants to inland sites as far north as Nevada, Wyoming, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, New York, and Massachusetts (see Appendix); considered rare visitor Jul–Sep along N. Carolina coast (Fussell 1994). While a few white-morph Reddish Egrets recorded as vagrants, nearly all reports are of dark morphs. Vagrant also to Lesser Antilles, where recorded from St. Martin, Antigua, Montserrat, and Dominica (Raffaele et al. 1998).

Not recorded.

Formerly bred in Jamaica (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998). Plume-hunting extremely reduced and possibly extirpated populations from Florida, Louis-iana, and much of Texas in late 1800s; much of this historic range reoccupied since 1930. Changes elsewhere likely but poorly documented. Increased sightings in Central and n. South America since 1970 likely reflect increase in observer coverage but may be indication of population increase.

No specific information. Egretta species records exist from late Tertiary and early Quaternary of Florida (B. Chandler in Rodgers and Smith 1995); Egretta identified as early as late Miocene–early Pliocene (Becker 1985).