They have long mouths, long necks and long horns, and their feathers are white, brown, gray-blue and so on. Some egrets are used to winter feathers and compound feathers respectively. Or gradually disappear after the breeding period. During the flight, the neck will shrink into an S-shape, the long legs will protrude from the tail, and the wings will slowly flap. These are the identification features of wild egrets.
Egrets are known as "monitoring birds of air and water quality" and enjoy the reputation of "environmental protection birds", and are national second-class protected animals.
Egrets belong to cranes. Most egrets have bold feathers. During the breeding season, they grow long and beautiful feathers. Their habits are similar to those of other herons.
Egrets like to live in lakes, swamps and wet forests, and belong to birds. Mainly eat small fish, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and crustaceans in shallow water. They build large and irregular nests in trees, bushes or on the ground.
Great egrets are more common. They are about 90 cm long and only have feathers on their backs.
Cattle-backed egrets are found in Africa and Asia, and occasionally in northern South America and the United States. It's an egret with small white feet and yellow feet, with a body length of about 50 cm. They like to live on the ground, keep company with herbivorous livestock and wild animals and feed on insects.
The feathers of egrets have high ornamental value. Ancient people like to decorate clothes, while westerners like to decorate hats with clothes. Feathers have high economic value. Egrets like to live in groups, so they are killed in large numbers, resulting in a sharp decline in their numbers and almost extinction. Fortunately, the way people dressed changed and strict protection measures were taken, so the egret was spared from extinction.
Yellow-billed Egret, produced in China and distributed in Jilin, Liaoning, Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong, Fujian and other places, is a national second-class protected animal. Rock heron, white spoonbill and black-faced spoonbill also belong to the national second-class protected animals.