Bird, bug, butterfly and a wild variety of photos from Belarus, Cyprus, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Scotland and Spain by Irish wildlife photographer Patrick J. O'Keeffe and invited guests

Monday 4 March 2013

LITTLE EGRET (Egretta garzetta) Broadmeadow Estuary, Swords, Fingal, Co. Dublin, Ireland

 
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The Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) is a small member of the heron family Ardeidae which includes Bitterns, Egrets and Herons. It is found in the temperate parts of Eurasia and Africa as well as Australia and New Zealand. Over the last 60 years or so this species has greatly expanded its range including recolonising its former breeding areas in Northern Europe, as well as Ireland. It first bred in the Caribbean in the mid 1990’s and is increasingly being recorded along the North American eastern seaboard.

Patrick J. O'Keeffe / Raw Birds