Great Egret

wading birds · water hunters · builders · white plumage

Brilliantly white. Great egrets have pure white feathers that shimmer in the sun. They look elegant and graceful when they stand still, waiting for fish to swim by.

Expert fishers. These birds hunt in shallow water by slowly walking and watching for movement. When they spot a fish, they snap it up with a lightning-fast jab of their sharp beak.

Colony builders. Great egrets don't live alone. They gather together to build huge stick nests high in trees near water, where dozens of families raise their chicks together.

World travelers. You can find great egrets across Asia, Africa, the Americas, and Europe. They're spreading to cooler places in northern Europe that weren't their home before.

Seriously tall. These birds are large wading birds with long legs and long necks that help them reach into water and spot danger from far away.