Little Egret

The little egret is a small white heron, 55–65cm long with a wingspan of 88–106cm and a weight of 350–550g, with a slender black bill, black lores, long black legs and yellow feet; the eye is yellow. Dark forms with largely bluish-grey plumage also occur. In the breeding season adults grow two long, narrow plumes on the nape and lacy plumes on the breast and back. Juveniles have greenish-black legs and duller feet (Wikipedia, general species account).

It feeds in shallow water and on land on a wide variety of small animals. It breeds colonially, often with other waterbirds, building a stick platform in a tree, bush or reedbed, and both parents incubate the three to five bluish-green eggs for about three weeks; the young fledge at about six weeks. In warm regions most birds are resident, while northern birds migrate, and its range has gradually spread north. In India it is resident across a very large range; SoIB 2023 finds its trends uncertain and rates it a Low conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).