The Story
On March 22, 2018, I photographed this Medium Egret (Ardea intermedia) near the Mai Po Marshes in Hong Kong’s northwest New Territories. The medium egret is a medium-sized white heron that lives year-round in southern and eastern Asia. It has all-white plumage, generally dark legs and a thick yellow bill. Breeding birds may grow loose, filmy plumes on the breast and back. IUCN lists the species as Least Concern. The Mai Po Marshes nature reserve covers 380 acres on Deep Bay, a shallow estuary of international importance. Mai Po lies within the Inner Deep Bay Ramsar site, listed as a Wetland of International Importance in 1995.
I used a Pentax K-1 and the HD PENTAX-D FA 150-450mm F4.5-5.6ED DC AW for this one, at 1/1250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200. WWF’s work at Mai Po, including education and bird monitoring with public help, keeps this wetland open to people and safe for birds.
©2018 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Medium Egret (Ardea intermedia) 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 2020), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List