Great Egret

Ardea alba

These stunning white birds breed colonially, constructing stick nests in the crowns of large trees in areas well buffered from disturbance along rivers and in swamps. In Missouri, on rare occasions they share breeding colonies with Great Blue Herons and Black-crowned Night-Herons. Colony sites and nests are re-used year after year and the destruction of a site can cause a local reduction in the population (Parnell et al. 1988).

Code Frequency

As with Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets often disperse some distance after breeding. Therefore, the possible breeding locations shown on the map should be disregarded. These large, conspicuous nesters likely bred only where confirmed to breed.

Distribution

Great Egrets are rare breeders in Missouri as indicated by the map. Nests were actually observed in only one block, 12 kilometers north of Nevada in Vernon County. The three confirmed breeding sites along the Mississippi River were in Pike, Lincoln and Pemiscot counties. The latter site was a mixed colony that included Black-crowned Night-Herons, Little Blue Herons, Cattle Egrets and Snowy Egrets. In the remaining colonies, Great Egrets co-nested with Great Blue Herons.

Phenology

Great Egrets begin appearing in Missouri at the end of March and numbers peak in mid-May (Robbins and Easterla 1992). Nesting activities commence immediately.

Breeding Evidence

Reported in 22 (1.8%) of 1,207 blocks

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