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Ardea ibis

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Cattle Egret

G5Secure Found in 10 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.105970
Element CodeABNGA07010
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassAves
OrderPelecaniformes
FamilyArdeidae
GenusArdea
Synonyms
Bubulcus ibis(Linnaeus, 1758)
Other Common Names
cattle egret (EN) Garça-Vaqueira (PT) Garza Ganadera, Garcita Bueyera (ES) Héron garde-boeufs (FR)
Concept Reference
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
Taxonomic Comments
Formerly placed in Bubulcus, but genetic data (Huang et al. 2016, Hruska et al. 2023) indicate that Ardea as previously constituted was paraphyletic with respect to Bubulcus (AOS 2024).
Conservation Status
Rank MethodExpertise without calculation
Review Date2016-04-06
Change Date1996-11-20
Edition Date1988-04-21
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Range Extent Comments
BREEDS: in Western Hemisphere locally from California, southern Idaho, Colorado, North Dakota, southern Saskatchewan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, southern Ontario, northern Ohio, and Maine south, primarily in coastal lowlands, through Middle America and West Indies to South America (northern Chile, northern Argentina, southeastern Brazil). Breeding range is expanding with deforestation in Central America. NORTHERN WINTER: throughout much of breeding range, north to the southern U.S. In the U.S., most abundant in winter in Florida, around the Salton Sea (California), on the coastal plains of southern Texas, and around the mouth of the Mississippi River in Louisiana (Root 1988). Introduced in Hawaii. Old World species that has spread from populations introduced in South America (NGS 1983); some have concluded that the species colonized South America on its own.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Wet pastureland and marshes, fresh water and brackish situations, dry fields, agricultural areas (especially irrigated ones), garbage dumps. In West Indies, roosts at night in mangrove swamps or on mangrove islands (Raffaele 1983). Nests in trees on islands in lakes; along watercourses; in swamps; on mangrove cays; near marshes. Usually nests with other herons or in single species colonies.

Ecology

Often flies in large flocks in morning and evening.

Reproduction

Clutch size is 2-6 (commonly 3-4). Incubation, by both sexes, lasts 21-24 days. Young can fly short distances at 40 days, reasonably well at 50 days. May breed at 1 year. Usually nests in colonies.
Terrestrial Habitats
Grassland/herbaceousCropland/hedgerow
Palustrine Habitats
HERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLANDRiparian
Other Nations (2)
United StatesN5B,N5N
ProvinceRankNative
South DakotaS4BYes
CaliforniaSNRB,SNRNYes
MichiganSNRNYes
VirginiaSNANo
ArizonaS2B,S4NYes
OregonSUYes
TexasSNRYes
North DakotaS4Yes
AlabamaS3N,S5BYes
MaineS1BYes
WashingtonSNAYes
North CarolinaS4BYes
MarylandS3BYes
IllinoisS3Yes
LouisianaS4N,S5BYes
ArkansasS4N,S5BYes
New YorkS2Yes
MinnesotaSNRBYes
KentuckyS1BYes
GeorgiaS5Yes
OklahomaSNRYes
NebraskaSNRNYes
ColoradoS4BYes
New MexicoS3B,S4NYes
South CarolinaS4Yes
MissouriSNRYes
Rhode IslandS1B,S3NYes
West VirginiaSNANo
ConnecticutS4BYes
TennesseeS3Yes
IowaS4NYes
FloridaS4Yes
NevadaS5Yes
IndianaSNAYes
New HampshireSNAYes
DelawareS1BYes
UtahS4BYes
IdahoS4BYes
MississippiS5B,S5NYes
MassachusettsS1B,S3NYes
Navajo NationS3MYes
VermontS1BYes
WyomingS1BYes
OhioS1Yes
New JerseyS3B,S4NYes
KansasS3BYes
CanadaN2B,N2M
ProvinceRankNative
SaskatchewanSNAYes
British ColumbiaSNRNYes
QuebecSNAYes
ManitobaS2BYes
OntarioSHB,S2MYes
Roadless Areas (10)
Arizona (1)
AreaForestAcres
Black CrossTonto National Forest5,966
California (1)
AreaForestAcres
Horse Mdw.Inyo National Forest5,687
Florida (2)
AreaForestAcres
Gum BayApalachicola National Forest11,645
Long BayApalachicola National Forest5,726
Nevada (1)
AreaForestAcres
Pearl PeakHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest71,405
Puerto Rico (1)
AreaForestAcres
Mameyes AreaCaribbean National Forest11,150
Utah (3)
AreaForestAcres
HogsbackWasatch-Cache National Forest7,936
Lewis PeakWasatch-Cache National Forest11,616
WellsvilleWasatch-Cache National Forest1,717
Virginia (1)
AreaForestAcres
North MountainJefferson National Forest8,377
References (34)
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  3. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.
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