Great Egret (Ardea alba)


Group	Bitterns and Herons
Code	ABNGA04040
Order	Ciconiiformes
Family	Ardeidae
Author	Linnaeus, 1758
Rank	G5 (definitions)
Occurrence	SM (definitions)
Scale	N (definitions)

County List:


Western UP	none
Eastern UP	none
Northern LP	Arenac, Bay
Southern LP	Kent, Allegan, Calhoun, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Huron, Ionia, Kalamazoo, Monroe, Muskegon, Oakland, Ottawa, Saginaw, St. Clair, Tuscola, Washtenaw, Wayne, Jackson

Rule:

Mixed Forested/Nonforested or Nonforested Landscapes

Foraging and Nesting Habitat Requirements may be distributed over the NEIGHBORHOOD

Foraging Habitat 1st alternative:
      (Lake or Pond or River)
   adjacent to:
      (Any Emergent Wetland or Shorelines/Mudflats)

Foraging Habitat 2nd alternative:
      Any Emergent Wetland 
      or Sedge Meadow

Nesting Habitat:
      (Bottomland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))

view decision rule term definitions

Habitat List:

Habitats	Regen	Sap	Pole	Sm Saw	Lg Saw	Uneven
Aspen	no	no	no	no	no	-
Paper Birch	no	no	no	no	no	-
Oak	no	no	no	no	no	no
Assorted Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Northern Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Spruce/Fir	no	no	no	no	no	no
Hemlock	no	no	no	no	no	no
Jack Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
Red Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
White Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
Conifer Plantations	no	no	no	no	no	-
Mixed Upland Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Mixed Northern Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Mixed Upland Conifer	no	no	no	no	no	no
Mixed Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
Swamp Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Balsam Poplar & Swamp Aspen & Swamp Birch	no	no	no	no	no	no
Bottomland Hardwoods	no	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Tamarack	no	no	no	no	no	no
Northern White Cedar	no	no	no	no	no	no
Black Spruce	no	no	no	no	no	no
Mixed Lowland Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Mixed Lowland Conifer	no	no	no	no	no	no
Non-Forested	Lake, Pond, River, Marsh 1, Marsh 2 (MARSH), Sedge Meadow, Shorelines & Mudflats
Special Features	Riparian

view size class definitions

Literature:

Scharf, W. C. 1991. Great Egret. Pages 110-111 In: R. Brewer, G. A. McPeek, and R. J. Adams, Jr. (eds.) The atlas of breeding birds of Michigan. Michigan State University Press, East Lansing. 594 pp.

Habitat: In Michigan, Great Egrets make stick nests in trees. Nesting of Great Egrets in Michigan takes place among either Great Blue Herons or Black-crowned Night Herons. Nests tend to be in smaller trees, or lower in larger trees, when associated with Great Blue Herons.

Marshland foraging areas where amphibians, fish, and invertebrates form a prey base are important in determining colony sites for egret populations.

Kaufman, K. 1996. Lives of North American Birds. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 675 pp.

Habitat: Marshes, ponds, shores, mudflats. Usually forages in rather open situations, as along edges of lakes, large marshes, shallow coastal lagoons, and estuaries; also along rivers in wooded country. Usually nests in trees or shrubs near water, sometimes in thickets some distance from waters, sometimes low in marsh.

Diet: Mostly fish. Aside from fish also eats crustaceans, frogs, salamanders, snakes, aquatic insects. In open fields may catch grasshoppers, rodents. Has been seen catching small rails and other birds.

Nest: Site is in tree or shrub, usually 10-40 feet above the ground or water, sometimes very low in thicket or marsh, sometimes up to 90 feet high in tall cypress.