Great egrets: The grace and elegance of the Lowcountry on two legs

Standing over three feet tall, with white plumage and a long, crooked neck, the great egret (Ardea alba) epitomizes the beauty and elegance of the Lowcountry.

Like its smaller white-feathered cousin, the Snowy Egret, it’s a member of the heron family.

Great egrets are distinguished by their long, yellow bills and black legs and feet, while snowy egrets have black bills and yellow feet.

Look for great egrets at lagoons, salt marshes, and other wetlands, where they wade gracefully through shallow water or stand motionless in one spot, peering into the water in search of prey.

Their diet consists mostly of fish, but they’ll also spear crabs, shrimp, frogs, snails, insects, worms, and other aquatic animals, plus small land prey such as lizards, snakes, and mice.

During the breeding season, great egrets nest in large, noisy colonies, often alongside Snowy Egrets, White Ibis, Anhingas, and other water birds.

The male egret selects the nest site, usually in a tree near the water, and builds a large platform out of branches and twigs. His mate often helps him finish the nest, after which she lays three to five pale blue eggs.

The parents take turns incubating, and both keep busy feeding the voraciously hungry offspring after they hatch.

The chicks are a handful, competing aggressively with one another for food and even threatening intruders.

Stronger nestlings may attack weaker ones or push them out of the nest.

Although no longer endangered, great egrets were once hunted nearly to extinction for their long breeding feathers (aigrettes), which males fan out during courtship.

During the late nineteenth century, these showy plumes were prized adornments for women’s hats, and by 1915 millinery had become a booming industry. Ounce for ounce, egret feathers once cost more than gold.

Millions of breeding egrets were slaughtered for their feathers, while the chicks were left in the nest to starve.

Thanks to the efforts of the National Audubon Society, along with growing public concern, steps were taken to outlaw plume-hunting and to establish sanctuaries for great egrets and other birds threatened by the plume trade.

Today, despite increasing habitat encroachment, great egrets are still common in the Lowcountry.

Some of these stately birds have been known to live over twenty-two years.

This story was originally published June 27, 2016 at 10:40 AM with the headline "Great egrets: The grace and elegance of the Lowcountry on two legs."