Egret
| Egret | |
|---|---|
 | |
Eastern great egret (Ardea alba modesta) | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Pelecaniformes |
| Family: | Ardeidae |
| Genera | |
Egretta | |
Egrets /ˈiːɡrət/ are herons which have white or buff plumage, and develop fine plumes (usually milky white) during the breeding season. Egrets are not a biologically distinct group from the herons and have the same build.
Contents
1 Biology
2 Species in taxonomic order
3 Habitat
4 References
5 External links
Biology
Great egret in flight
Egrets at dusk in Kolleru Lake, Andhra Pradesh, India
Many egrets are members of the genera Egretta or Ardea which also contain other species named as herons rather than egrets. The distinction between a heron and an egret is rather vague, and depends more on appearance than biology. The word "egret" comes from the French word "aigrette" that means both "silver heron" and "brush", referring to the long filamentous feathers that seem to cascade down an egret's back during the breeding season.
Several of the egrets have been reclassified from one genus to another in recent years: the great egret, for example, has been classified as a member of either Casmerodius, Egretta or Ardea.
In the 19th and early part of the 20th century, some of the world's egret species were endangered by relentless plume hunting, since hat makers in Europe and the United States demanded large numbers of egret plumes, leading to breeding birds being killed in many places around the world.
Several Egretta species, including the eastern reef egret, the reddish egret, and the western reef egret have two distinct colours, one of which is entirely white. The little blue heron has all-white juvenile plumage.
Species in taxonomic order
Egret from Egypt
Great egret or great white egret, Ardea alba
Intermediate egret, Mesophoyx intermedia
Cattle egret, Bubulcus ibis
Little egret Egretta garzetta
Eastern reef egret or Pacific reef heron, Egretta sacra
Western reef egret or western reef heron, Egretta gularis
Snowy egret, Egretta thula
Reddish egret, Egretta rufescens
Slaty egret, Egretta vinaceigula
Black egret, Egretta ardesiaca
Chinese egret, Egretta eulophotes
Egret at Palakkad, India
Egret catching its prey
Habitat
Egrets hunt and live in both saltwater and freshwater marshes.[1]
References
^ The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "Egret". All About Birds. Cornell University. Retrieved 11 August 2015..mw-parser-output cite.citationfont-style:inherit.mw-parser-output qquotes:"""""""'""'".mw-parser-output code.cs1-codecolor:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registrationcolor:#555.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration spanborder-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-errordisplay:none;font-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-errorfont-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-formatfont-size:95%.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-leftpadding-left:0.2em.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-rightpadding-right:0.2em
External links
Media related to Ardeidae at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Ardeidae at Wikispecies- Well written and illustrated Egret article Encyclopaedia Britannica
Great egret Ardea alba—USGS
Media related to Ardeidae at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Ardeidae at Wikispecies
