Click on any image to open the slideshow
Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758
Great Egret
Florida native
Great egrets are mostly found wading slowly in shallow waters and marshes though much of Florida, sometimes foraging in nearby upland habitats. The diet consists mainly of fishes, amphibians, snakes, snails crustaceans, insects and small mammals.
A year-round resident of Florida and many other coastal areas of the Americas, extending inland through the southeastern coastal plain and up the Mississippi River during breeding season. Can be seen in other parts of the United States and into southern Canada in the warmer months. The range of Ardea Alba includes all of the continents except Antartica.
With the exception of the great blue heron white morph, the great egret is the largest of the white herons. The great egret has a very long neck, a long, straight, pointed yellow bill, and long black legs and feet. In contrast, the white form of the great blue heron has yellowish to buffy-gray legs. During the breeding season long plumes extend beyond the end of the tail.
Ardea alba is a member of the Ardeidae - Herons & Bitterns family.
Other species of the Ardea genus in the Wild Florida Photo database:
Ardea herodias - GREAT BLUE HERON
Ardea herodias var. occidentalis - GREAT WHITE HERON
Ardea ibis - WESTERN CATTLE-EGRET
iNaturalist profile for this species
For more information on this species, visit the following link:
Cornell Lab of Ornithology All About Birds page for this species
Date record last modified: Apr 26, 2025
