Do you know this bird?

stop animal cruelty

Sorry l have no pic but il describe it best l can....

I can only come close to it about 25 ft til it flys away, basically its a snow white bird, kinda short neck, bit of a long body, big long wings and l think grey legs. From a long distance l thought it was a dove, but its too big to be one. Then l thought it might be some kind of young herrin, but its pure white. I see it standing on land where my father has cows, on very wet mucky land. Hes always there on his own. He stands in the muck, about 2-3ft tall....

Any ideas? Must bring my camera out next time

ThunderCat

A little egret would be my guess

stop animal cruelty

ThunderCat wrote: »

A little egret would be my guess

just went onto google images, l think you might be right, he about 90% like this fella...



what would he be looking for on own land tho? would have thought they would feed in a river...

paulfosters

Wonder is it a cattle egret. becoming more common in Ireland i think ?

stop animal cruelty

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cattle_Egret never mind! came across this, has killed the curiosity!

stop animal cruelty

and now that l think of it, hes always standing quiet close to our cattle!

Ichabod Crane

paulfosters wrote: »

Wonder is it a cattle egret. becoming more common in Ireland i think ?

It's a possibility,certainly!I live close to the Curragh and last year there was a bit of excitement when a Cattle Egret was spotted there.

I wonder can the OP remember if the bird in question had a black or yellow-coloured bill?AFAIK,the Little Egret would have a black bill and the Cattle Egret a yellow one.If you can send us a photo of your feathered friend,that would be great!

Woodville56

stop animal cruelty wrote: »

and now that l think of it, hes always standing quiet close to our cattle!

If you get another look at the bird, check the following - cattle egrets & great white egrets have yellowish bills and dark/ black feet in winter, while little egrets have black bills and quite conspicuous yellow feet !
Little egrets and cattle egrets are a good size smaller than grey herons whereas the great white egret is only marginally smaller than a grey heron .

stop animal cruelty

will try and get a pic 2maro

OpenYourEyes

stop animal cruelty wrote: »

just went onto google images, l think you might be right, he about 90% like this fella...



what would he be looking for on own land tho? would have thought they would feed in a river...

It'd most likely be looking for frogs, worms and other invertebrates I'd say.

stop animal cruelty

couldnt get a pic today weather was too bad plus he spotted me a good bit away, couldnt see what color his beak is, lv a feeling its grey. As soon as l get on il put it up, might be a few days

OpenYourEyes

To be honest there's thousands of Little Egrets in Ireland (gradually spreading from the south and east), and a relatively small number of Cattle Egrets turn up here, so it was always more likely to be a Little Egret.

Still a lovely bird to see! Have started to see them more and more here in Roscommon and they're always a welcome sight!

Cork boy 55

I saw one this week, side by side with A grey heron on a river bank near sea I tried to get close for a photo but they flew off together when they saw me coming , in same direction.
Weird like the heron and egret had bonded or something.

68deville

Cattle egrets turn up occasionally on the river slaney,have spotted a gud
Few in last 5 or 6 years

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Cork boy 55 wrote: »

I saw one this week, side by side with A grey heron on a river bank near sea I tried to get close for a photo but they flew off together when they saw me coming , in same direction.
Weird like the heron and egret had bonded or something.

Little Egret and Grey Heron often hang about together. They also share nesting areas or heronries.