The medium egret (''Ardea intermedia''), median egret, smaller egret or intermediate egret, is a medium-sized

heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...

. Some taxonomists put the species in the genus ''

Egretta ''Egretta'' is a genus of medium-sized herons, mostly breeding in warmer climates. Representatives of this genus are found in most of the world, and the little egret, as well as being widespread throughout much of the Old World, has now starte ...

'' or ''Mesophoyx''. It is a resident breeder in southern and eastern Asia.

Taxonomy

Some authorities classify the intermediate egret

species complex In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

in its own

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

genus, ''Mesophoyx'', while others place it with the smaller egrets in ''

''. There were three recognised subspecies, and these are sometimes raised in to species: * '' A. i. brachyrhyncha'' Brehm, 1854 "yellow-billed egret" - sub-Saharan Africa * ''A.i. intermedia'' Wagler, 1827 "intermediate egret" - Asia from the Russian Far East to Japan to India and the Greater Sundas * '' A. i. plumifera'' Gould, 1848 "plumed egret" - eastern Indonesia,

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

and Australia. ''A.(i.) intermedia'' differs from ''A.(i.) brachyrhyncha'' and ''A. (i.) plumifera'' by having a black bill when in breeding plumage, while ''A.(i.) plumifera'' has a yellow-and-pink bill and ''A. (i.) brachyrhyncha'' has much yellower lores and face. A further difference between this species and the "yellow-billed" species is that the intermediate egret has black at the top of the legs compared to reddish in the yellow-billed egret. The split of intermediate egret into 3 species was accepted by the IOC on 26 September 2023, this form was given the common name medium egret by the IOC.

Description

The medium egret, as its scientific name implies, is intermediate in size between the

great egret The great egret (''Ardea alba''), also known as the common egret, large egret, great white egret, or great white heron, is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and southern Europe. R ...

and smaller white egrets like the

little egret The little egret (''Egretta garzetta'') is a species of small heron in the family Ardeidae. It is a white bird with a slender black beak, long black legs and, in the western race, yellow feet. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on ...

and

cattle egret The cattle egret (formerly genus ''Bubulcus'') is a cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan clade of heron (family (biology), family Ardeidae) in the genus ''Ardea (genus), Ardea'' found in the tropics, subtropics, and warm-temperate zones. Ac ...

, though nearer to little than great. It is about long with a wingspan and weighs c. , with all-white plumage, generally dark legs and a thickish yellow bill. Breeding birds may have a reddish or black bill, greenish yellow gape skin, loose filamentous plumes on their breast and back, and dull yellow or pink on their upper legs (regional variations). The sexes are similar.

Differences from other egrets

The medium egret has non-breeding colours which are similar to other white egrets, but the intermediate is smaller, with neck length a little less than body length, a slightly domed head, and a shorter, thicker bill. The

has a noticeable kink near the middle of its neck, and the top of its longer bill nearly aligns with the flat top of its head. Close up, great egret's gape line extends behind the eye, while the intermediate's is less pointed and ends below the eye. The intermediate tends to stalk upright with neck extended forward. The great is more patient, often adopting a sideways-leaning "one-eyed" stance.

Little egret The little egret (''Egretta garzetta'') is a species of small heron in the family Ardeidae. It is a white bird with a slender black beak, long black legs and, in the western race, yellow feet. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on ...

s have yellow-soled feet and black bills. They often run after fish in shallow water. Breeding birds have long nuptial plumes on the back of their heads.

Behaviour

The medium egret stalks its prey methodically in shallow coastal or fresh water, including flooded fields. It eats fish, frogs, crustaceans and insects. It often nests in

colonies A colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule, which rules the territory and its indigenous peoples separated from the foreign rulers, the colonizer, and their '' metropole'' (or "mother country"). This separated rule was often or ...

with other herons, usually on platforms of sticks in trees or shrubs. The typical clutch size is 2 or 3 eggs but there can be as many as 6 eggs in a clutch, the colour of the eggs is pale green, with a smooth, slightly pitted shell. Both parents incubate the eggs and they hatch after between 24 and 27 days. The eggs hatch asynchronously, after hatching the adults brood the semialtricial young for 12 days, defending the nests from aerial predators during both incubation and brooding, they crouch over the nest and raise their plumes and point their bill towards the threat. The parents regurgitate the food to feed the young, initially onto the floor of the nest but later the chick takes the food from the parent's mouth. There may be competition for food within the brood. Pinfeathers may appear on the chicks as early as 4 days old and the young are able to leave the nest at 24 days old, although they return to be fed. Fledging occurs at around 40 days old and they leave the colony after 70 days. In Africa and Australia they are reported to be quite successful breeders with 96% and 88% of nests fledging at least a single chick. Intermediate egret populations are more successful in wet years than in dry years.

Gallery

File:Inter Egret Descending Tree Kabini Apr22 D72 23600.jpg, Descending to perch, Kabini River,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

File:Photo showing the size difference in Great, Intermediate and Little Egrets - Taken From Dhikala, Jim Corbett TR.jpg, Photo showing the size difference in great, medium and little egrets, India

References

* ''Birds of The Gambia'' by Barlow, Wacher and Disley, * ''Birds of India'' by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp,

External links

Species text in ''The Atlas of Southern African Birds''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q27074615, from2=Q218821 intermediate egret Birds of Japan Birds of East Asia Birds of Indomalaya Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa intermediate egret intermediate egret Articles containing video clips