Great Egret

Ardea alba

General description 6

Overall plumage is white, and, for most of the year, when not breeding, the bill and facial skin are yellow. The feet are dark olive-grey or sooty black, as are the legs. During the breeding season, the bill turns mostly black and the facial skin becomes green. Also at this time, long hair-like feathers (nuptial plumes) hang across the lower back, and the legs become pinkish-yellow at the top. Young Great Egrets are similar to the adults, but have a blackish tip to the bill.

Sources and Credits

  1. (c) J.M.Garg, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Great_Egret_%28Casmerodius_albus%29-_Non-breeding_plumage_in_Kolkata_W2_IMG_4341.jpg
  2. (c) Robert, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5014/5436747769_a8624ce841.jpg
  3. (c) Ferran Pestaña, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5180/5429859397_44348971ec.jpg
  4. (c) anonymous, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.biopix.com/photos/SDL-Ardea-alba-00011.jpg
  5. (c) Mike Baird, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Ardea_alba_-Morro_Bay_Heron_Rookery_-8d.jpg
  6. (c) Katerina Tvardikova, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/31846099

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