Butorides validipes

† Butorides validipes is an extinct heron of the genus Butorides from the Pleistocene of the United States. Related to living green herons, it was a piscivorous wader that stalked shallow water environments to capture fish, frogs, and aquatic invertebrates. The species name 'validipes' — 'strong-footed' — references robust leg bones distinguishing it from extant relatives. Its fossils provide evidence of the historical Butorides diversity in North America.