Great Egret - Species Profile
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List
LC - Least Concern
NatureServe
N5B, N5N - Secure Breeding and Nonbreeding
SNRB - Unranked Breeding
Minnesota
not listed
Description
Great Egret is a large, slender heron. It is the symbol for the National Audubon Society. The common name is a misnomer, as this is actually a heron, in the genus Ardea (great herons).
Adults are 36″ to 42″ long and have a wingspan of 48″ to 60″. They weigh 32 to 40 ounces. Males are larger than females. They live about 15 years.
The plumage is completely white. The neck is very long. Small patches of skin between the eyes and bill (lores) are green.
The bill is long, stout, straight, and yellow.
The legs are long and black. The feet are black.
In flight their neck is pulled back forming an "S" curve and they trail their feet.
Size
Total length: 36″ to 42″
Wingspan: 48″
Voice
Loud, low-pitched, rapid cuk-cuk-cuk.
Similar Species
Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis) is a stockier, much smaller bird, 19″ to 21″. The bill and legs are orange.
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) is a smaller bird, 22″ to 26″. The bill is black. The feet are yellow, though the legs, like those of the Great Egret, are black.
Habitat
Freshwater, mud flats, tidal shallows, marshes, irrigation canals, open riverbanks.
Ecology
Migration
April to September
Nesting
Nesting is usually in colonies in wetlands and wooded swamps, often with Great Blue Herons and Double-crested Cormorants. Occasionally, a pair will nest alone. The nest is a platform of sticks, twigs, and stems in a tree or tall shrub over water.
The clutch is 1 to 6 (average 3) pale, greenish-blue eggs.
Diet
Frogs, lizards, snakes, crayfish, fish, mice, birds, aquatic and other insects.
Distribution
Occurrence
Common migrant and breeder
Maps
The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map
Taxonomy
Class
Aves (Birds)
Order
Pelecaniformes (Pelicans, Herons, and Allies)
Family
Ardeidae (Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns)
Subfamily
Ardeinae (Typical Herons and Egrets)
Genus
Ardea (Great Herons and Egrets)
Family
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns (Family Ardeidae) were formerly classified under the order Ciconiiformes. Based on a phylogenomic study published in 2008, the family was transferred to the order Pelecaniformes.
Subordinate Taxa
African Egret (Ardea alba melanorhynchos)
American Great Egret (Ardea alba egretta) 
Eastern Great Egret (Ardea alba modesta)
Western Great Egret (Ardea alba alba)
Synonyms
Casmerodius albus
Egretta alba
