Nature Says It All

Great Egret

(Ardea alba)

We were living on the north side of town when I started going to Stricker Pond. One morning, I woke up early and drove over to the pond as the sun was rising. The above Great Egret was there. First he was in the water and then he took off and flew to another part of the pond. It was a beautiful sight.

Have you seen a Great Egret? It is also known as the Common Egret or Great White Egret. They are majestic birds. Shorebirds, they are all white and have black legs and feet. As you can see, when flying, they extend their legs straight back. They belong to the heron family.

I have seen many Great Egrets over the years at Stricker Pond. Each time I see them, I smile in gratitude.

When fishing for its next meal, the Great Egret curls its neck and brings its head towards its body. As soon as it sees a fish, it extends its head and then scoops the fish up in its beak.

Great Egrets are pretty large birds. They are between 31 and 41 inches long and are just over 3' tall. When their wings are extended, they are 55 inches. Now that's a nice sized bird! They can fly up to 25 mph but are generally slow flying birds.

They feed on fish, frogs, snakes, insects and more. Stricker Pond is filled with most of these things and so it makes a perfect feeding area. They live approximately 15 years.

Each time I go to the pond, I look out for this beautiful bird. I was happily surprised to see one one morning when it was at a different part of the pond. This time, it was closer to the colorful grasses and flowers.

When you're near a pond, keep your eyes open for this beautiful bird. As long as we take care of our part of the world, we will continue to see them.