Birdland

Look At Him Strut

During the breeding season, Cattle Egrets display dramatic orange-buff plumes on their backs, breasts and crowns. As per the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, they often forage at the feet of grazing cattle, head bobbing with each step. Or, they ride on the backs of cattle, and pick at ticks. Elsewhere in the world, these egrets forage alongside camels, ostriches, rhinos, and tortoises. Thus, Cattle Egrets have many names – usually referencing the grazing animals they team up with to forage. In various languages they are known as cow cranes, cow herons, cow birds, elephant birds, rhinoceros egrets, and hippopotamus egrets. This bird was photographed at City Park by Park Hill resident Mark Silverstein.