CATTLE EGRET
This small, stocky heron is 460 to 560mm tall with an 880 to 960mm wingspan. Cattle egrets have white plumage, a yellow bill (dark in juveniles), and greyish yellow legs. During the breeding season, both sexes develop orange/buff plumes on their backs, breast and crown. The bill, legs and irises become bright red for a brief time, prior to mating.
Cattle egrets nest in colonies near water, with other wading birds. The nest is a platform of sticks in a tree or a shrub. Although nesting near water, cattle egrets forage for food in drier, open habitats, like fields. They often accompany cattle or other large herbivores, catching insects and small invertebrate prey disturbed by these animals. The cattle egret is much more successful foraging next to large mammals than when they are on their own. 3 to 4 eggs are laid and take 23 days to incubate. The chicks fledge after 30 days.
