![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj492FWprvrSy8xcRHPDyLPc9u236gdS44h2XwUwUdLWc_kxqevY1OXS33l67DOPPfnZVLY8N_IjXeMYgk8crkoOFuHizJfD5YSZKWtuzRFXZnZALjNMA8Ets20rfddYqP-zF_eV8jDQFs/s320/EasternGreatEgret_1.jpg)
Last week I did a few bird surveys and I noticed that many birds seemed to be scarce when I was out counting, and arrived afterwards. How did they know!?! Except for the Black Swans on the river who tested my counting skills - 105 of them. I think that's more than my count for them last year.
Anyway, when I wasn't doing a count I saw an
Eastern Great Egret. It was majestic.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4wG26I_VIfxRdcFok4kvpngd1_8SpatgFiQ4j1VIuY-rnzv2TTDe9d3EmnYdBWWEw0iZ6eSfjsOsu8C57DxJDj-wDQBg-SnzlO2Z7nMjZb78Po4W6YkWnYbCfkT0DWbv4z8bejKo0kYM/s320/EasternGreatEgret_2.jpg)
I was driving out of the carpark at the beach and it stood in the grass at the edge of the road. About 1.2 m tall, it had its eye on something and stalked very slowly towards it, allowing me time to stop the car and snap photos out the window.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7n6N-wBZOyudlaZhJfxkNEPO3pZh-KL_-EIjmpGSTo0XLRB3UmSN9uLBI5O94PzJZcn8EGwpDhMv5w76udW0kZSnICboMKHlS95G9U-1Jq875aRFs6-Q-vLGwM_FpF7dPifO16MH2Qww/s320/EasternGreatEgret_3.jpg)
I've seen lots of the smaller cattle egrets, and I've often wondered if I was mistaking them for the Great Egret, but now I know that there is no mistaking them. This bird stands about twice or three times the size of the cattle egrets.
And a great thing about this bird - I knew it, as soon as I saw it - and an even better thing - when I read the Birdlife website's description and it said the Great Egret had a distinctive kink in its neck, my heart temporarily sank, and then I looked at the photos again and there was that kink. I'm always excited by kinks, but this one was special! I got an id right :) :) :)
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