[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

When the Asian race of the Cattle Egret was elevated to a species named "Eastern Cattle Egret", the remaining "western" birds were renamed "Westerm Cattle Egret". Cattle Egrets arrived from Africa and began to colonize the New World in the 1950s. Since then, they have spread throughout most of the eastern US and have recently been found in southeastern Canada. Cattle Egrets get their name from their habit of associating with and following cattle and other livestock to feed on the insects flushed by the grazing animals. This one was photographed in the reeds of a wildlife refuge as a late summer thunderstorm began to move across the refuge. Photo taken at Brigantine NWR, New Jersey, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: September 1981)

[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

This Cattle Egret in breeding plumage was photographed in Corpus Christi, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: April 1981)

[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

This Cattle Egret in flight was photographed near Pedricktown, New Jersey, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: May 1980)

[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

These Cattle Egrets were photographed during their northward migration resting on the beach near the mouth of the Rio Grande River at Boca Chica, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor EDAF 180 f2.8 lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: April 2000)

[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

This Cattle Egret was photographed at Anahuac NWR, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm EDAF-S f4 lens (EFL=450mm) on a Nikon D100 camera. (Date: April 25, 2004)

[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

This Cattle Egret was photographed at Smith Oaks Sanctuary - HAS, High Island, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 70-200mm EDAF-S VR f2.8 lens (EFL=300mm) on a Nikon D100 camera. (Date: May 13, 2006)

[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

This Cattle Egret was photographed at the Andrews Bird Viewing Trail, Andrews, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 70-200mm EDAF-S VR f2.8 lens + Nikkor TC14E II 1.4x Teleconverter (EFL=420mm) on a Nikon D200 camera. (Date: October 31, 2007)

[Length 20 in. Wingspan 36 in.]

This Cattle Egret was photographed at the Andrews Bird Viewing Trail, Andrews, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 70-200mm EDAF-S VR f2.8 lens + Nikkor TC14E II 1.4x Teleconverter (EFL=420mm) on a Nikon D200 camera. (Date: November 2, 2007)

[Length 39 in. Wingspan 51 in.]

This Great Egret was photographed at Anahuac NWR, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 70-200mm EDAF-S VR f2.8 lens (EFL=300mm) on a Nikon D200 camera. (Date: April 24, 2007)