Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis)

County List:

Rule:

Nonforested Landscapes

Foraging and Nesting Habitat Requirements may be distributed over the NEIGHBORHOOD 

Foraging Habitat:
      Any Emergent Wetland 
      or Sedge Meadow 
      or Small Grains/Forage Crops 
      or Fields/Pastures

Nesting Habitat:
      Marsh 2
      or Lowland Brush
      or (Bottomland Hardwoods (Pole or Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven)

Habitat List:

view size class definitions

Literature:

Habitat: Cattle Egrets nest colonially in reed beds, bushes, or tall trees.

Unlike other herons and egrets, this species typically feeds in dry fields, often following cattle (or other animals) and waiting for them to flush insects into view.

Habitat: Farms, marshes, highway edges; often associated with cattle. Widespread in any kind of open country, including pastures, plowed fields, lawns, and roadsides. Also in aquatic habitats, including flooded fields, marshes. Nests in trees or shrubs, in colonies with other herons and egrets.

Diet: Mostly insects. When associating with grazing animals in fields, diet is mostly large insects, especially grasshoppers, crickets, flies; also frogs, spiders, moths. Elsewhere may feed on crayfish, earthworms, snakes, nestling birds, eggs, sometimes fish. May scavenge for edible refuse in dumps.

Nest: Site is in colony, in trees or shrubs often in swamps or on island.