Bird Identification: CLOSED: Please help ID these birds...herons? , 0 by morningdove225

morningdove225 wrote:
I apologize for the poor photos. (I was afraid I would scare these guys away if I opened the door for a better shot!)

I came across 3-4 of these birds in the trees of my yard this morning around 9am. I live very close to a river inlet, apx 3 miles from the ocean in central NJ. To me, they look like very small herons...or very large kingfishers.

I've looked in various books and websites and have been unable to ID it on my own. I've never seen them before, and I'm so excited to find out what they might be.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!