[obol] Re: Cattle Egret associates

[Cindy Ashy]

It is my impression that it is far less important what species cattle egrets
associate with than the fact that they are attracted to habitat with abundant
insects...including habitat disturbed by cattle which are constantly stirring
up the insects making them easier to snag.

I've lived in/visited areas in the Southeast US where cattle egrets are a very
common sight in fields where cattle are not located. In fact, the highest
density of cattle egrets I've ever seen (multiple times) was in the vast
marshes of Cameron Parish (SE Louisiana)....gazillons of insects (black
swarming clouds of them), no cattle (most seasons and not in the wildlife
refuge) and hundreds upon thousands of cattle egrets as far as the eye could
see. Aligators eat them by the way but I once saw a cattle egret standing on
the head (just behind the eyeballs) of one of the biggest fattest gators I ever
saw...I think I stopped breathing until that egret flew away.

In the farmlands of rural Louisiana and other places in the South, cattle
egrets are a very common site...I have seen them follow tractors and other
off-road vehicles and they are always around in great numbers on a recently
turned/harvested field.

I believe understanding insect distribution/abundance, seasonal differences,
changes in pattern due to climate change and/or other factors would be key to
understanding cattle egret migration and retention in newly colonized areas. It
makes sense to me why cattle egrets haven't taken a stronghold in the Pacific
Northwest.

We saw one in a wet field in the Beaver Creek area in Lincoln County (I believe
last spring but my memory is a bit fuzzy on this one).

So, in my opinion if you want to find a cattle egret in Oregon, follow the
bugs! Wait for the right weather....warm, humid, no wind....look for freshly
disturbed habitat like farmland....or find any other open area that just
happens to be full of yummy insects like grasshoppers. And...since Oregon is
not exactly known for insect abundance, if you want to see MANY cattle egrets
up close and personal, follow the bugs!...visit the bug paradises of the
Southeast US and other buggy countries.

Cindy Ashy


 
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