Great Whites in the United Kingdom!

The expansion of the great egret into East Anglia has been, in no small part, due to the astonishing and often ground-breaking work carried out by conservation bodies in the Netherlands. The species was previously considered an exotic visitor to British shores, and in 1970 as few as 150 were recorded across the whole of Europe. Over 8,000 great white egrets were spotted in the UK in 2020, up from 1,000 in 2010.

The Great Egret was persecuted by 'plume hunters' across much of Europe during the 1800s. It's brilliant white plumes – long feathers used in display – were highly sought after by milliners providing hats to fashionable ladies. For much of the 20th century it was restricted to the wetlands of eastern Europe. In 2012, it successfully nested in Britain for the first time on the Somerset Levels, where small but increasing numbers have continued to breed. In the summer of 2017 Great Egrets fledged three chicks at Holkham NNR, Norfolk, marking the county’s first successful breeding attempt.

In the past three years I have seen Great Egret at NWT Hickling Broad (Norfolk), Marston Marsh nature reserve (Norfolk), Holkham nature reserve (Norfolk), WWT Welney (Norfolk), RSPB Strumpshaw Fen (Norfolk), RSPB Buckenham Marshes (Norfolk), RSPB Titchwell Marshes (Norfolk), Ormesby Little Broad (Norfolk), Carlton Marshes (Sufolk), Dunwich Heath (Suffolk), RSPB Minsmere (Suffolk), Rutland Water and Eyebrook Reservoir (Leicestershire) as well as in South Korea, Zambia, South Africa, Cuba, USA (Florida), Brazil, Borneo and Antigua.

Posted on 05 February, 2023 18:24 by heliastes21