Great Egret

Casmerodius albus

Other Names

Egretta Alba   Great White Egret, Large Egret, Great American Egret, Great White Heron   Grande Aigrette, Aigrette blanche, Héron huppé   Silberreiher   Garceta Grande   Ägretthäger   Grote Zilverreiger   Airone bianco maggiore

World: Widely distributed throughout the world from N, C and S America eastwards to C Europe and Africa and across much of central and southern Asia and then as far South as Australia and New Zealand.

Kenya: Found throughout much of Kenya on moderately open water. Absent from much of the arid North except around Turkana.

This is a large heron, distinguished from other white herons by its size and the black line which extends from the gape to behind the eye. There are 4 subspecies; alba, egretta, modesta and the African ssp (pictured above) melanorhynchos which are distinguished by the colouration of the bare skin. They are mainly aquatic feeders taking fish, amphibians, insects, snakes and crustaceans but they will also take terrestrial prey such as lizards and small mammals.

In common with other Herons, the Great White Egret develops a set of spectacular plumes during the breeding season. It uses these in courtship displays during which these feathers are spread like a very large fan. This feature almost brought about the downfall of the species; in the late 19th and early 20th century their numbers were decimated by hunters supplying the fashion trade. However they recovered from this and spread back through most of the areas from which they had disappeared.

We have gone with Zimmerman's taxonomy and included the Great White Egret in the genus Casmerodius but some authorities put it in the genus Egretta while others place it in Ardea. Recent DNA analysis suggests that the species is more closely linked to Ardea than Egretta.