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Great Egret

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Great Egret
ew)

ID info
(/guide/Great_Egret/id)

Life History
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory)

Maps
(/guide/Great_Egret/mapsrange)
(/
Herons
Great Egret
Ardea alba
ORDER: Pelecaniformes
FAMILY: Ardeidae
ID Info(/guide/Great_Egret/id)
 Listen

Great Egret by Shannon O'Shea (https://flic.kr/p/Q8bCk3)
Adult
Breeding adult
(American)
Adult
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
Basic Description
The elegant Great Egret is a dazzling
sight in many a North American wetland.
Slightly smaller and more svelte than a
Great Blue Heron, these are still large
birds with impressive wingspans. They
hunt in classic heron fashion, standing
immobile or wading through wetlands to
capture fish with a deadly jab of their
yellow bill. Great Egrets were hunted
nearly to extinction for their plumes in
the late nineteenth century, sparking
conservation movements and some of the
first laws to protect birds.
More ID Info
(/guide/Great_Egret/id)
(/guide/Great_Egret/maps-range)
Year-round Breeding
Migration Nonbreeding
Range map provided by
Birds of the World (https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/spec
Explore Maps
(/guide/Great_Egret/mapsrange)
Find This Bird
Visit a pond or coastal
marsh and look for an allwhite bird—slightly smaller
than a Great Blue Heron,
with black legs and a yellow
bill. It may be wading
slowly or standing stockstill, peering intently at the
water as it searches for fish.
If you live outside of the
The Great Egret is the symbol of the
National Audubon Society, one of the
oldest environmental organizations in
North America. Audubon was founded
Habitat
Marshes
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory#habitat)
Food
Fish
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory#food)
Nesting
Tree
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory#nesting)
Behavior
Stalking
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory#behavior)
Conservation
Low
Concern
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory#conservation)
Cool Facts
species’ breeding range, you
may still see Great Egrets in
late summer as they move
about widely before heading
to their wintering grounds.
to protect birds from being killed for
their feathers.
Not all young that hatch survive the
nestling period. Aggression among
nestlings is common and large chicks
frequently kill their smaller siblings.
This behavior, known as siblicide, is
not uncommon among birds such as
hawks, owls, and herons, and is often a
result of poor breeding conditions in a
given year.
The pristinely white Great Egret gets
even more dressed up for the breeding
season. A patch of skin on its face
turns neon green, and long plumes
grow from its back. Called aigrettes,
those plumes were the bane of egrets
in the late nineteenth century, when
such adornments were prized for
ladies’ hats.
In mixed-species colonies, Great
Egrets are often the first species to
arrive, and their presence may induce
nesting among other species.
Great Egrets fly slowly but powerfully:
with just two wingbeats per second
Other Names
Garceta Grande (Spanish)
Grande Aigrette (French)
their cruising speed is around 25 miles
an hour.
Though it mainly hunts while wading,
the Great Egret occasionally swims to
capture prey or hovers (somewhat
laboriously) over the water and dips
for fish.
The oldest known Great Egret was 22
years, 10 months old and was banded
in Ohio.
Compare with Similar Species
Click on an image to compare
Snowy Egret
(/guide/Great_Egret/speciescompare/70611051)
Great Blue Heron
(/guide/Great_Egret/speciescompare/60314301)
Little B
(/guide/Gre
compar
Speciesin This Family
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns (/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae) (Order:
Pelecaniformes, Family: Ardeidae (/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae))
Browse Species in This Family
(/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae)
More to Read
Looking for ID Help?
Our free app offers quick ID help with global coverage.
Try Merlin Bird ID (http://MerlinBirdID.com/)
American Bittern
(/guide/American_Bittern/overview)
Least Bittern
(/guide/Least_Bittern/overview)
Yellow-crow
(/gui
crowned_Nigh
(http://www.birds.cornell.edu/?
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145a58c1a6c.1725588178880.1725588178880.172558817888
How To
Identify
White
Herons
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/howto-identify-white-herons-excerpt-frombetter-birding-book/)
Living Bird
Magazine
Moneyball
For
Shorebirds:
How
Precision
Analytics Are
Changing
Habitat
Conservation
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/moneyballfor-shorebirds-how-precision-analytics-arechanging-habitat-conservation/)
How
Do I
Keep
Herons
From
Eating
The
Fish In
My
Pond?
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/howdo-i-keep-herons-from-eating-the-fish-in-mypond/)
Bird
Cams
Bird
Cams
FAQ:
RedTailed
Hawk
Nest
(https://www.all
cams-faq-red-taile
How To
Identify
White
Herons
(https://www.a
to-identify-whit
better-birding-b
A Hawk
Has
Started
Hunting
The
Feeder
Birds In
My
Yard.
What
Can I
Do?
(https://www.
hawk-has-starte
birds-in-my-yar
© 2024 Cornell University

Great Egret
Identification
ew)

ID info
(/guide/Great_Egret/id)

Life History
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory)

Maps
(/guide/Great_Egret/mapsrange)
(/
Identification
(/guide/Great_Egret/id)
Photo Gallery
(/guide/Great_Egret/photogallery)
Similar Species
(/guide/Great_Egret/speciescompare)
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
See more
taxonCode=greegr&mediaType=p&sort=rating_rank_desc&__hstc=7510036
Adult
Long-legged wading bird with a long, S-curved
neck and a daggerlike bill.
(/guide/Great_Egret/photo-gallery/70610211)
© Alex Lamoreaux / Macaulay Library
(https://macaulaylibrary.org/photo/32782691?
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145a58c1a6c.1725588178880.1725588178880.1725588178880.1&
Pennsylvania, August 17, 2016
Breeding adult (American)
"American" Great Egrets occur across much
North America and South America. Breeding
adults have an orange-yellow bill and develo
showy plumes (known as aigrettes) that they u
in courtship displays.
(/guide/Great_Egret/photo-gallery/7061020
© Darren Clark / Macaulay Library
(https://macaulaylibrary.org/photo/45292901?
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145a5
Texas, April 12, 2016
Compare with Similar Species
Click on an image to compare
Great Egrets are tall, long-legged
wading birds with long, S-curved
necks and long, dagger-like bills.
In flight, the long neck is tucked in
and the legs extend far beyond the
tip of the short tail.
The Four Keysto ID
Snowy Egret
(/guide/Great_Egret/speciescompare/70611051)
Great Blue Heron
(/guide/Great_Egret/speciescompare/60314301)
Little
(/guide/Gre
compar
Looking for ID Help?
Our free app offers quick ID help with global coverage.
Try Merlin Bird ID (http://MerlinBirdID.com/)
Size & Shape
© Alex Lamoreaux / Macaulay Library
(https://macaulaylibrary.org/photo/32782691
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145
All feathers on Great Egrets are
white. Their bills are yellowishorange, and the legs black.
© Evan Lipton / Macaulay Library
(https://macaulaylibrary.org/photo/66801701
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145
Relative Size
Smaller than a Great Blue Heron;
larger than a Snowy Egret.
goose-sized or larger
Measurements
Both Sexes
Length: 37.0-40.9 in (94-104 cm)
Weight: 35.3 oz (1000 g)
Wingspan: 51.6-57.1 in (131-145 cm)
Color Pattern
Great Egrets wade in shallow
water (both fresh and salt) to hunt
fish, frogs, and other small aquatic
animals. They typically stand still
and watch for unsuspecting prey to
pass by. Then, with startling
speed, the egrets strike with a jab
of their long neck and bill.
© Eric Liner / Macaulay Library
(https://macaulaylibrary.org/video/464557?
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145
You’ll find Great Egrets in both
freshwater and saltwater habitats.
They are colonial nesters,
typically placing stick nests high
in trees, often on islands that are
isolated from mammalian
predators such as raccoons.
© Jonathan Eckerson / Macaulay Library
(https://macaulaylibrary.org/photo/43398821
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145
Behavior
01:17
Habitat
Speciesin This Family
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns (/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae) (Order:
Pelecaniformes, Family: Ardeidae (/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae))
Browse Species in This Family
(/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae)
More to Read
American Bittern
(/guide/American_Bittern/overview)
Least Bittern
(/guide/Least_Bittern/overview)
Yellow-crow
(/gui
crowned_Nigh
How To
Identify
White
Herons
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/howto-identify-white-herons-excerpt-frombetter-birding-book/)
Living Bird
Magazine
Moneyball
For
Shorebirds:
How
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/moneyballfor-shorebirds-how-precision-analytics-arechanging-habitat-conservation/)
What Is
The
Difference
Between
A Beak
And A
Bill?
(https://ww
is-the-differe
eBird
Mesmerizing
Migration:
Watch 118
(https://w
migration
map-of-th
(http://www.birds.cornell.edu/?
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145a58c1a6c.1725588178880.1725588178880.172558817888
Precision
Analytics Are
Changing
Habitat
Conservation
How
Do I
Keep
Herons
From
Eating
The
Fish In
My
Pond?
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/howdo-i-keep-herons-from-eating-the-fish-in-mypond/)
Bird Species
Migrate
Across A
Map Of The
Western
Hemisphere
Living Bird
Magazine
Learn
How To ID
These 5
Confusing
Streaked
Sparrows
(https://www
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© 2024 Cornell University

Habitat
Marshes
Food
Fish
Nesting
Tree
Behavior
Stalking
Conservation
Low Concern
Habitat
Great Egrets live in freshwater, brackish, and
marine wetlands. During the breeding season
they live in colonies in trees or shrubs with
other waterbirds, ranging across the southeastern states
and in scattered spots throughout the rest of the U.S.
and southern Canada. The colonies are located on
lakes, ponds, marshes, estuaries, impoundments, and
islands. Great Egrets use similar habitats for migration
Great Egret
Life History
ew)

ID info
(/guide/Great_Egret/id)

Life History
(/guide/Great_Egret/lifehistory)

Maps
(/guide/Great_Egret/mapsrange)
(/
Habitat
Food
Nesting
Behavior
Conservation
Credits
Birds of the World (https://
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145a58c1a6c.17255881
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
stopover sites and wintering grounds. They hunt in
marshes, swamps, streams, rivers, ponds, lakes,
impoundments, lagoons, tidal flats, canals, ditches, fishrearing ponds, flooded farm fields, and sometimes
upland habitats.
 Back to top
Food
The Great Egret eats mainly small fish but also
eats amphibians, reptiles, birds, small
mammals and invertebrates such as crayfish,
prawns, shrimp, polychaete worms, isopods,
dragonflies and damselflies, whirligig beetles, giant
water bugs, and grasshoppers. It hunts in belly-deep or
shallower water in marine, brackish, and freshwater
wetlands, alone or in groups. It wades as it searches for
prey, or simply stands still to wait for prey to approach.
 Back to top
Nesting
NEST PLACEMENT
Males choose the display areas, where nests
are later constructed. The nest itself is up to
100 feet off the ground, often over water,
usually in or near the top of a shrub or tree such as a
redwood, tamarisk, live oak, eastern redcedar, yaupon
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
holly, wax myrtle, mangrove, Australian pine,
buttonwood, Brazilian pepper, black willow, or privet.
Great Egrets occasionally nest on the ground or on
artificial platforms.
NEST DESCRIPTION
The male builds a nest platform from long sticks and
twigs before pairing up with a female, and then both
members of the pair may collaborate to complete the
nest, though the male sometimes finishes it himself. The
nest is up to 3 feet across and 1 foot deep. It is lined with
pliable plant material that dries to form a cup structure.
They don’t typically reuse nests from year to year.
NESTING FACTS
 Back to top
Clutch Size: 1-6 eggs
Number of Broods: 1-2 broods
Egg Length: 2.2-2.4 in (5.5-6
cm)
Egg Width: 1.6-1.7 in (4-4.3 cm)
Incubation Period: 23-27 days
Nestling Period: 21-25 days
Egg Description: Smooth, pale
greenish blue.
Condition at Hatching: Long, white down
covering the back;
eyes open.
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
Behavior
The Great Egret walks with its neck extended
and its wings held close to its body. In flight, it
is graceful and buoyant, with its neck tucked
back against its shoulders and its legs trailing behind.
Great Egrets form monogamous pairs each breeding
season, though it’s not known whether the pair bond
lasts through multiple years. Early in the breeding
season adults grow long plumes on their backs, which
they raise in courtship displays. Males perform most of
the displays, which can involve preening the wings,
ducking the head, holding and shaking twigs in the bill,
and stretching the neck. Nestlings compete fiercely
with each other, and dominant chicks sometimes end
up stabbing the youngest siblings to death. The chicks
also threaten and attack intruders.
 Back to top
Conservation
Great Egret populations increased by
approximately 1.5% per year across most of
their range from 1966 to 2019, according to
the North American Breeding Bird Survey
(https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/about/). Partners in
Flight
(https://pif.birdconservancy.org/ACAD/Database.aspx)
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
estimates there are 9.5 million breeding birds on the
continent, and rates them 6 out of 20 on the Continental
Concern Score
(http://www.stateofthebirds.org/2016/overview/methods/?
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145a58c1a6c.17255
indicating a species of low conservation concern. More
than 95% of the Great Egrets in North America were
killed for their plumes to decorate hats in the late
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Plume-hunting
was banned, for the most part, around 1910, and Great
Egret populations quickly began to recover. Since the
1930s, the egrets have had to contend with major
habitat loss and degradation, as well as threats like
contaminated runoff from farm fields or sewage
treatment. However, their populations appear stable
and compared to other egrets and herons, Great Egrets
seem to be unfazed by habitat loss on a localized scale,
even in extremely altered landscapes like the
Everglades. Since Great Egrets are large, very mobile
birds with flexible habitat preferences, environmental
changes may be affecting them at a larger scale that has
yet to be studied.
 Back to top
Credits
Kushlan, J. A., M. J. Steinkamp, K. C. Parsons, J. Capp,
M. A. Cruz, M. Coulter, I. Davidson, L. Dickson, N.
Edelson, R. Elliott, R. M. Erwin, S. Hatch, S. Kress, R.
Milko, S. Miller, K. Mills, R. Paul, R. Phillips, J. E. Saliva,
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
W. Sydeman, J. Trapp, J. Wheeler and K. Wohl (2002).
Waterbird conservation for the Americas: The North
American waterbird conservation plan, version 1.
Washington, DC, USA.
Lutmerding, J. A. and A. S. Love. (2020). Longevity
records of North American birds. Version 2020.
Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Bird Banding
Laboratory 2020.
McCrimmon Jr., Donald A., John C. Ogden and G.
Thomas Bancroft. (2011). Great Egret (Ardea alba),
version 2.0. In The Birds of North America (P. G.
Rodewald, editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca,
New York, USA.
Partners in Flight. (2020). Avian Conservation
Assessment Database, version 2020.
Sauer, J. R., D. K. Niven, J. E. Hines, D. J. Ziolkowski Jr., K.
L. Pardieck, J. E. Fallon, and W. A. Link (2019). The North
American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis
1966–2019. Version 2.07.2019. USGS Patuxent Wildlife
Research Center, Laurel, MD, USA.
Sibley, D. A. (2014). The Sibley Guide to Birds, second
edition. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY, USA.
 Back to top
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
Compare with Similar Species
Click on an image to compare
Speciesin This Family
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns (/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae) (Order:
Pelecaniformes, Family: Ardeidae (/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae))
Snowy Egret
(/guide/Great_Egret/speciescompare/70611051)
Great Blue Heron
(/guide/Great_Egret/speciescompare/60314301)
L
(/guid
co
Looking for ID Help?
Our free app offers quick ID help with global coverage.
Try Merlin Bird ID (http://MerlinBirdID.com/)
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
Browse Species in This Family
(/guide/browse/taxonomy/Ardeidae)
More to Read
American Bittern
(/guide/American_Bittern/overview)
Least Bittern
(/guide/Least_Bittern/overview)
Yellowcrowned
How To
Identify
White
Herons
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/howto-identify-white-herons-excerpt-frombetter-birding-book/)
Living Bird
Magazine
Moneyball
For
Shorebirds:
How
Precision
Analytics Are
Changing
Habitat
Conservation
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/moneyballfor-shorebirds-how-precision-analytics-arechanging-habitat-conservation/)
What's
Going
On
When I
See
Little
Birds
Going
After A
Big
Bird?
(https://www.a
i-see-little-birdsthey-do-this/)
What's The
Best Book Or
Field Guide
For Bird
Identification?
(https://
the-best
identific
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)
(http://www.birds.cornell.edu/?
__hstc=75100365.51166af58a57026109f86145a58c1a6c.1725588178880.1725588178880.172558817888
How
Do I
Keep
Herons
From
Eating
The
Fish In
My
Pond?
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/howdo-i-keep-herons-from-eating-the-fish-in-mypond/)
The Basics
Of Bird
Migration:
How,
Why, And
Where
(https://ww
basics-how-w
migration/)
© 2024 Cornell University
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/)