A white egret flew over our house yesterday!

[Ruby Reason]

They are so big and so beautiful. Sometimes they travel over in groups of one hundred or more. I can't wait to see the flocks this year. That one was the first I've seen this year.

[Curmudgeoness]

1. Where is this? What general area?

I have never seen flocks flying over, although I have seen rookeries with large numbers of egrets. I would love to see a hundred in one flock flying!

Welcome to DU.

[Ruby Reason]

2. Thanks for the welcome.

I live in central PA not too far from Harrisburg. We don't see huge flocks every year, but when we do it is worth just parking in the grass and staring straight up! They are beautiful!

[Curmudgeoness]

3. Oh, I am in PA too, but at the Ohio border.

I have yet to see more than one flying at a time, although I had a place to go when I lived in Houston where they had a rookery. That was a wonderful sight too. If I ever see a flock overhead, I will be sure to stop and stare!

[Ruby Reason]

4. Stop and stare is exactly what I do.

I was raised about half way between Pittsburgh and Erie, so you must be close to my old stomping grounds!

[Curmudgeoness]

5. That is exactly where I live.

That is the explanation I give to anyone trying to figure out where I am. There are some great birding areas close in any direction.

[Ruby Reason]

6. OK, so my home town was Clarion.

When I was young I lived in Mariann Estates in Shippenville. I had grandparents in Titusville and Reynoldsville, an Aunt in Dubois, one in Pittsburgh. We camped yearly at Cooksforest. Nice area. I'm so glad I was raised there, even though I was usually considered a country bumpkin.

[Curmudgeoness]

7. I am right on the border with Ohio

so I am quite a bit west of Clarion---but that is still close when you look at the whole US. I love the Titusville and Cooks Forest areas and used to spend a lot of time travelling the backroads and hiking around in those areas. PA is a beautiful state.

[Celebration]

8. will someone tell me the difference between a white heron and a white egret?

All birds that fly with an S neck are herons. Right? Are these white herons, or egrets? I did get this small flock of..........whatever. I don't think they are blue herons, but these were very far away. My telephoto lens was out to the max. I think flocks are generally high in the sky.

[XemaSab]

9. *In general* if it's white it's an egret and if it's some other color it's a heron

That being said, there are exceptions to that rule.

Reddish egret and little blue heron come to mind...

[DrewFlorida]

10. Great White Egrets have black legs!

The most pronounced difference between a Great White Egret and a White Heron, is the legs. The legs of the Great White Egret are black, while the White Heron has yellow legs.

Here in Florida they are both common.