The great white Egret

A month or so ago, when I parked up to go to the reserve, I noticed a large white 'heron-like bird' on the opposite bank of the lake adjacent to the site. It was very white and seemed bigger than the 'Little Egret' I was familiar with. I took some photos on my phone, but the bird was just too far away to get a good image of. I shared it with a number of people and the consensus was that it was just a Little Egret.

Over the next few visits I saw the bird again, but as before, it was too far away to get a good image. I was sure it wasn't a Little Egret, but couldn't prove it. I was becoming more and more confident it was instead a 'Large White Egret', an uncommon bird for the UK. My good friend and experienced birder Andy explained that it is very easy to identify Little from Great (other than size) and that is that the more common Little has a black beak, whilst the Great White has a yellow beak. Again that elusive photo just wouldn't come.

On one Tuesday, in early January, Andy and I finished an ecology survey at a nearby site earlier than expected. We had our good cameras and scopes with us so we nipped up to Chesterton. To our great excitement, our quarry was much nearer to us than my previous attempts and it wasn't just 1 bird, but in fact a pair.

The images below are of the Great White Egret, still quite some distance from us, resplendent with its yellow beak and bright white plumage. Thank you Andy for sharing them with Serenity Nature.