Yes that's a Egret they showed up early this year usually don't see them till late August and the stay till October when weather turns cold they move on. We have Herons here too they stay year round .
Not much in the way of sunsets, when there are clouds we really get the sunsets...... I couldn't smell it at all.......Sure makes for some crappie photography.
sometimes wildfire smoke acts as a filter and filters out all but the reds and oranges when the sun is low in the sky ( sunrise and sunset ) yeah, haze can be frustrating. I've never had much luck with a UV filter or a circ polarizer either. (doing much for haze )