Great White Egret

A rather large bird is 94–104 cm tall and wingspan 131–145 cm. ^{[2] The} weight of adult birds is about 912–1140 g. ^[3] As a rule, males are somewhat larger than females. The plumage is completely white. The beak is long, straight, painted yellow. Paws and toes are long, dark gray. The neck is long, S-shaped. The sixth cervical vertebra is somewhat elongated and constructed in such a way that the bird is able to quickly extend its neck or, conversely, draw it into itself. ^[4] The tail is short, wedge-shaped. After an autumn molt, long white feathers protrude from the shoulders and sides of the tail and the males and females in the upper body from the shoulders. During the breeding season, these feathers shrink and become flat, showing needle-like extensions behind the tail. ^[5] At this time, the beak acquires an orange-yellow shade with a dark ending, and the bridle turns green. Any crest on the head, found in other species of herons, is absent in the great egret. Sexual dimorphism is not pronounced.

Great egret is common in warm temperate and tropical latitudes of Europe , Asia , North and South America , Africa , Australia and New Zealand . It lives along various reservoirs both on the seashore and inside the continent: marshy lowlands, floodplains and river banks, fresh and salt lakes, eustarians and mangroves . In addition, it can be seen in agricultural land, open fields, rice plantings and along drainage ditches. Hunting heron in shallow water or on land.

He moves slowly and stately, pulling his neck and peering ahead of him in search of food. She hunts alone or in groups during daylight and twilight, at nightfall she stumbles into groups along with other herons and seeks shelter. Often takes food from other, smaller herons, and also enters into a fight for prey with other birds of its own species. Sometimes it is aggressive, even if the surrounding food is enough. The flight is smooth, its speed varies in the range of 28-51 km / h. ^{[6] [7]} During the breeding season, prefers to search for food nearby, but if necessary, can travel a distance of 6-20 km. ^[5] Like other types of herons, when flying, the head retracts, bending the neck into an S-shape.

During the breeding season has its own area, which is carefully guarded. At the end of the season, couples often fall apart and scatter. Some of the populations lead a sedentary lifestyle, others in the winter time migrate within the range, and others fly over long distances.

The period of puberty in these birds comes in 2 years. Great egrets are seasonal monogamous birds, that is, they create a pair for only one mating season, although there are cases of repeated reunion of the same pair. ^[8] Birds nest in large colonies, often with other heron species, such as the great blue heron and the snow egret ( Egretta thula ). During the year, only one offspring is bred. In temperate latitudes, spring or summer is chosen for breeding, when there is a wide variety of food; In the tropics, crossing can occur all year round. ^[five]

Grooming is a complex process, during which bare skin patches change their color, and the mating feathers acquire great importance. The bridle (the area of ​​skin near the eyes) turns green from yellow, the beak takes on orange tones and darkens at the end. If, after laying eggs, the color of the bridle acquires its usual colors, but the beak retains its altered state for the entire breeding period. ^[four]

The male arrives to the colony first and chooses a place for the future nest. In sequence, the age of the bird is important - the older males choose a place first, as a rule, closer to the center of the colony. Herons often change places of nesting sites and colonies, so the males who arrived at the place become established in a new place and begin to attract females, performing ritual dances. Interested females sit on neighboring branches and watch, but they can perform a counter dance or whirl around the future nest. The female can also drive away other females in the vicinity. The pair is chosen carefully, and one of the birds can sometimes drive away the other. The nest is built immediately after the pair is created. ^[four]

The nest of a large white heron resembles a large pile of sticks and twigs collected in one place. It may last for several years, although the colony may move to another area or select other trees. The material is collected in all possible ways, including theft from neighboring nests. Usually, the male is engaged in collecting the building material, while the female lays it in the nest.

The female lays 3-6 blue-green eggs about 57 mm in size, with an interval of 2-3 days each. Both female and male incubate eggs. The incubation period is 23-26 days, after which practically naked and helpless chicks appear in the same order. Among the chicks, fierce competition begins for access to parental food; moreover, the first nestlings, due to their size, have an advantage over younger peers - they can peck at them and try to monopolize their right to access to feeding. If the year is very good in terms of food, then all offspring can lean on, but most often two or even one chick survive - the rest die. Full plumage of chicks occurs in 42-49 days. Young birds start to fly well after about 7 weeks, but even before 10-11 weeks they depend on their parents. ^{[4] [5] [8]}

The diet of the great white heron is made up of frogs , snakes , fish , crayfish , small rodents , crickets , grasshoppers and other various insects . Since other wading birds have a similar diet, they often compete in search of prey. In the choice of food a little picky, are considered heterotrophs . In a number of studies it is noted that while standing still in one place, great white herons are able to catch more medium-sized prey than moving slowly. ^{[6] [9] [10]}

Adult herons rarely have natural enemies. Sometimes they become victims of crocodiles, and young birds in the first year of life are eagles (golden eagle, burial eagle) and white-tailed eagle. However, crows , American vultures (Cathartidae) and raccoons often hunt for eggs and chicks.

Life expectancy in the wild is about 15 years on average, and about 22 years in captivity. ^{[11] The} mortality of these birds is high while they are still in the nest and in the first few months after the plumage. On average, the mortality of this species in the first year is 76% and 26% in subsequent years. ^[four]

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  egg Ardea alba melanorhynchos - Museum of Toulouse

• Vertebrates of Russia: Great White Egret
• Great White Egret on bss.sfsu.edu
• Jones, J. 2002. “Ardea alba” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed January 02, 2007 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Ardea_alba.html
• Great White Egret on www.birds.cornell.edu