The Tricolored Herons did their best to attract some attention in their showy breeding plumage.
The two photos above were taken last week, and the photos below were taken this past week.
Lots of Tricolored Heron parents are already busy keeping their lovely blue eggs cozy!
If you’re a Tri-colored Heron, who does what?
“Females construct nests out of sticks and vegetation collected by the males. . . . Females lay between three to five eggs and both parents share incubation duties. Eggs hatch approximately 21-25 days after being laid (LaLonde 2003). The young remain in the nest until they are approximately 35 days old.” (Florida Fish and Wildlife; my emphasis in bold)
Birder's Journey 
They are gorgeous and so are your images. Their eggs are blue!! I didn’t know that. 💙😀
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They look so spectacular in their breeding plumage.
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Amazing, that one of the most common of all herons in all of Florida burst out in breeding season to become one of the most beautiful of all.🐣
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Yes, quite the transformation!
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Amazing captures. 😊
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Thank you!
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New life as it begins. Carefully monitored
by mom and dad. Really great photos!
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It really is remarkable to be able to watch these families care for each other and grow. ☺️
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Wonderful photos. Thanks for sharing.
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Thanks so much, Amy! And thank you for visiting. ☺️
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These are gorgeous, I especially love your last photo with the eggs!! 💙
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It’s exciting to see the parent stand up just long enough for us to catch a glimpse of the eggs for a few moments!
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🥰
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The plumage in the first two is really beautiful and the display attractive. Did one egg go awol in that last picture?
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Thanks, Steve. It could be that a third egg is just hidden in the nest behind the sticks – good question. There are so many active tricolored heron nests now, I’ll have to try to find the same one and see how many eggs I notice next time. 😉
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The breeding displays of the herons and egrets is really something special. Thank you for sharing a very nice series of images!
Good information on their nesting habits, too.
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Thanks, Wally! I love this time of year!
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The poses are wonderful! Beautifully captured!
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Thank you so much, Belinda! It’s really a privilege to be able to watch them so closely at this time of year.
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Beautiful captures BJ and so lovely to see the eggs as well. They are always stunning in their breeding plumage. You have done so well. 🙂
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So kind of you, AB! There’s never a lack of photo opportunities at this time of year in the wetlands!
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Fantastic photos, Carol! That is documenting an important stage of the bird’s family history. Good job! 🙂 👍
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Thanks, HJ. How very fortunate we are to be able to witness this every year at such close range!!
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Wonderful captures, Carol! Excellent plumage, and so cool to see those blue eggs.
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Thanks, Ellen. Don’t you just love how the Tricolored Herons become transformed with this plumage and coloring?!
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I sure do, Carol, and they easily could be my favorites! If I played favorites 😁
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😉
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Fabulous photographs! The birds are very handsome and their eggs are a very pretty blue. Must be wonderful to see these herons. 🙂
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Thank you, Ann. There are lots of nests this year!
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That’s exciting!
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It is!!
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These are dramatic! We have rare purple herons and then the ordinary one that the Spanish call real/ royal. Great photos of these incredible birds.
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