Audubon_Great-White-Heron-sj

Great White Heron - Ardea herodias occidentalis
Author: John James Audubon
White morph of a great blue heron


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The great blue heron (Ardea herodias) is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae. These herons are common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America, as well as far northwestern South America, the Caribbean and the Galápagos Islands.The great blue heron is the largest heron native to North America. An all-white population found in south Florida and the Florida Keys is known as the great white heron (Ardea herodias occidentalis). Debate exists about whether this represents a white color morph of the great blue heron, a subspecies of it, or an entirely separate species. Order: Pelecaniformes > Family: Ardeidae > Genus: Ardea > Species: Ardea herodias