Animalia Life

Ardea alba
SUBFAMILY
Ardeinae
TAXONOMY
Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758, Europe. Four subspecies.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Great egret; French: Grande aigrette; German: Silberreiher; Spanish: Garceta Grande.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
A large, slender, white heron, with long neck, dark legs, and long back plumes when breeding. Length is 31–41 in (80–104 cm); weight is 1.5–3.3 lb (0.7–1.5 kg).
DISTRIBUTION
Occurs through most of North, Central, and South America; east Europe, Africa, and north Asia.
HABITAT
Uses a variety of wet habitats, including marshes, swamps, river margins, lake shorelines, flooded grasslands, sea-grass flats, mangrove swamps, coastal lagoons, and offshore coral reefs. Also uses artificial sites such as drainage ditches, rice fields, crawfish ponds, and aquaculture ponds.
BEHAVIOR
Stands or walks about alone or in groups. Roosts in trees when not feeding and repairs to communal roosts at night.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Feeds in shallow to moderately deep water, on shore next to the water, or on dry ground. Feeds usually during the day, most actively near dawn and dusk; in tidal environments, feeds principally on outgoing tides day or night. Walks about slowly to feed, using its long neck and head to tilt, peer, and sway to better see fish. Also hops and flies, using its wings and feet to disturb prey. When feeding solitarily, it will vigorously defend its site. Highly aggressive in flocks, defending its feeding area using displays and attacking nearby birds, often stealing their prey. Principal food is fish, but in some situations insects or shrimp predominate. May also eat frogs, lizards, snakes, small mammals, and small birds.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Temperate birds breed in the local early spring and summer but in more tropical situations rains are more important than solar season and breeding varies from place to place and even from year to year. They usually nest in the part of the rain cycle in which food becomes maximally available. They nest in a variety of situations in trees, bushes, bamboo, reeds and other plants near water and on islands, sites that are protected from ground predators. The nest is 31–47 in (80–120 cm) wide. The eggs are pale blue and clutch size is usually three to five (range is 1–6), being smaller in the tropics. Incubation lasts about 25–26 days. Young leave the colony in 42–60 days. Brood reduction is the rule.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not threatened. Breeding colonies are declining due to human plundering in Madagascar, however. Throughout its range the most critical conservation issue is identification, protection, and management of important nesting sites and associated feeding grounds.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
Its long breeding plumes were some of the most sought after during the plume-hunting era. Currently it is coming into conflict with humans in aquacultural situations in North America and elsewhere. However, the species is well appreciated and has long been used as a symbol of bird conservation in North America.

Other popular Animals