The Story
This is a Great Egret (Ardea alba) that I photographed near the Mai Po Marshes in Hong Kong’s northwest New Territories on March 22, 2018. The great egret can stand up to about a meter tall, with a wingspan of up to 170 centimeters. Apart from its size, it can be told from other white egrets by its yellow bill and black legs and feet. It lives across most of the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world and nests in trees, in colonies close to water. IUCN lists the species as Least Concern.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD PENTAX-D FA 150-450mm F4.5-5.6ED DC AW, at 1/1600 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200. Deep Bay faces pollution and development pressure, so protected wetlands like Mai Po matter for the birds that depend on it.
©2018 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Great Egret (Ardea alba) belongs to the family Ardeidae (Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2025), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List