Great Egret
Ardea alba

CLASS

Aves

ORDER

Ciconiiformes

FAMILY

Ardeidae

Range

From southern Canada southward to Argentina, and in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia

Habitat

Salt and freshwater marshes, marshy ponds and tidal flats.

Diet

Mostly fish but also insects, crustaceans and amphibians

Facts

• The great egret is the largest egret in the Old World.
• The male great egret chooses the nesting site and builds a nest platform of sticks and twigs in a tree or bush before he selects a mate.
• Both parents incubate the eggs and feed the chicks. The chicks fledge in about six weeks.
• Aggression among nestlings is common and large chicks frequently kill their smaller siblings.

Conservation

Plume hunters in the late 1800s and early 1900s reduced North American populations by more than 95 percent. Their plumes (feathers) which were popular in ladies fashion in the 19th century. The populations recovered after the birds were protected by law.

No population is considered threatened, but the species is vulnerable to the loss of wetlands.