Great White Egret

Members of the Heron family the Great Egret (Casmerodius albus), are conspicuous inhabitants of inland and coastal wetlands throughout the world. Although Egrets are primarily wetland birds, they are flexible in exploiting a variety of food resources. Great Egrets catch mice, gophers, snakes, lizards and grasshoppers in grassy fields.

Colonies
Heron colonies are not particularly permanent. A colony may be active one year and not occupied at all the next. New colonies may be established, grow in size and then be abandoned. The Great Egret is the striking, all white, long-legged, long-necked bird with a yellow bill and blackish legs that embellishes the marshes and shallows around bays and estuaries. An adult Egret measures about 40 inches from the tip of the bill to the tip of the tail, it has a wing spread of about 4-1/2 feet, and it weighs approximately two pounds.

The Mating Ritual
A  Egret's first priority at the beginning of the breeding season is to communicate to other members of the colony its general readiness to undertake the responsibilities of pairing and reproduction. Once in residence in the colony,  Egrets begin actively advertising their intentions. An unmated male takes possession of an old nest, or lacking that, a site where the pair will eventually build a nest and begins to display. While the male is displaying, one or more females may be perched on branches nearby watching. Eventually one of the females will approach the nest and attempt to hop on beside the male. His first reaction is to drive her off. She retreats and a period of assessment ensues in which the female continues to watch the display and may try again to join the male. Finally, he will accept her and allow her to remain on the nest.

After the male accepts the female and the bond between the two is well established, nest building begins.  Egrets build their nests of sticks that they take from unoccupied nests if available, otherwise, they break dead twigs from nearby trees or gather sticks from the ground. Males do most of the twig gathering, carrying the sticks to the females in their bills. Twig presentations continue throughout egg laying and incubation, and sometimes even for a short time after the eggs hatch. While one member of the pair is out foraging, the other guards the nest. If the nest were left unattended, other Egrets would quickly take the twigs, and the nest would be gone when the owners returned.

Copulation usually occurs on the nest, but it can also take place on a branch near the nest. The Egrets start to lay their eggs sometime during the last two weeks in April. Clutch size ranges from two to three eggs. Egret parents don't wait until the clutch is complete to start incubating but begin shortly before the second egg is laid. While one adult is out feeding, the other stays on the nest, guarding it and keeping the eggs warm.

The Young
The first egg hatches 25-29 days after incubation began, usually between 27 and 28 days. Newly hatched chicks grow quickly, so by the time the last chick in a brood of three or four hatches, the first chicks are much bigger and stronger. Competition for food is intense, and the older chicks often peck at their younger, smaller siblings at feeding time to prevent them from getting food. If there is ample food, the younger chicks flourish; when food is limited, they die.

Egrets feed their young by regurgitating food into the nest, where the chicks pick it up and gulp it down. After the young reach the age of about four weeks, they are left alone while both parents are out foraging. Feedings are a time of intense excitement at the nest. As soon as the food lands in the nest, the chicks frantically grab for bites, gulping down chunks as large as possible.

Flight
Flight practice begins at three to four weeks of age - as soon as the chicks are able to walk about in the nests. Serious flight practice begins at about seven weeks of age, when the chicks add jumping to wing flapping. As they gain skill and confidence, they venture from the nest to adjacent branches, and they soon discover that vigorous wing flapping can actually lift them. Soon they are flying short distances around the nest. Finally the moment of great adventure comes when they sail out over open space and land on  a tree ten feet or more away. First landings are often clumsy and require lots of wing flapping for balance, but the young are soon flying all over the heronry. By this time they are well developed and close to adult size.

BLACK NIGHT HERON - GREAT BLUE HERON - GREAT WHITE EGRET

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