Slaty egret facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Slaty egret |
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| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Pelecaniformes |
| Family: | Ardeidae |
| Genus: | Egretta |
| Species: |
E. vinacegula
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| Binomial name | |
| Egretta vinacegula (Sharpe, 1895)
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| Yellow: breeding, green: year-round, blue: nonbreeding | |
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The slaty egret (Egretta vinaceigula) is a small, dark bird that looks a bit like a heron. It lives in southern Africa. This egret is considered a vulnerable animal, which means it's at risk of disappearing. The biggest danger to them is losing their homes, also known as habitat loss. They are also protected by an agreement called AEWA, which helps save waterbirds that travel long distances.
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What Does a Slaty Egret Look Like?
For a long time, people thought the slaty egret was just a different colored version of the more common black egret. But in 1971, scientists realized they were two different species. The slaty egret has special features that set it apart.
One key difference is its bright yellow legs. It also has a reddish-brown throat. This color can even spread down to the belly in younger birds. Unlike the black egret, the slaty egret does not do a special "mantling" move. The black egret uses its wings like an umbrella when it hunts.
Where Do Slaty Egrets Live?
Slaty egrets live in the central and southern parts of Africa. The largest groups are found in Zambia and Botswana. In Zambia, there might be between 500 and 1,000 of these birds. They are often seen in places like Liuwa Plain National Park and Kafue Flats.
Botswana has an even bigger population, with probably over 2,000 birds. Many of them live near the Okavango Delta and Chobe River. In this area, there are at least 10 known places where they gather in colonies. This group of birds also extends into northern Namibia. About 300 slaty egrets can be found there.
Sometimes, slaty egrets travel to other countries when they are not breeding. They have been seen in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe. They are rarely spotted in northern South Africa. Scientists think there are probably about 3,000 to 5,000 slaty egrets in the whole world. They usually live in small groups, rarely more than 100 birds together.
Where Slaty Egrets Live (Habitat)
Slaty egrets love to live in areas that flood, like freshwater marshes. They also like temporary shallow wetlands. They prefer places where the water levels are slowly going down after heavy rains.
You'll often find them where there are lots of low plants growing in the water. These plants include Cynodon dactylon and Panicum repens. Slaty egrets seem to be more common in floodplains that have recently had fires. They are also often seen near red lechwe antelopes. These birds like to hunt for food in water that is less than 10 centimeters (about 4 inches) deep.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Slaty egrets build their nests in temporary wetlands. These wetlands are full of water after the seasonal rains. They prefer to nest in beds of tall Phragmites reeds. However, they will also build nests on islands of other plants. These can include water figs (Ficus verruculosa), Acacia trees, or Senegal date palms (Phoenix reclinata).
They might nest by themselves or in groups. Some colonies can have up to 60 nests! The nest is shaped like a bowl and is made of sticks. It's lined with soft plant material. Female egrets lay between one and four eggs. The eggs hatch after about 22 to 24 days.
How Slaty Egrets Behave
Slaty egrets usually stay in one area. But they do move around a bit when the rains change. These changes affect the water levels in their wetland homes. We don't fully understand these movements yet. For example, they live in Zambia all year, but we don't know if they breed there.
Sometimes, they are seen in nearby countries like Malawi, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and South Africa. This shows that slaty egrets do travel from place to place.
They mostly eat small fish, especially a type called cichlids. But in wetlands that dry up, they will eat other things. This includes frogs, water insects, and tadpoles. They hunt by looking for food in clear, shallow water. They can also pick snails off lily pads. Sometimes, they even catch dragonflies and other insects while standing still. Slaty egrets usually hunt during the day. They often hunt with other wading birds. They usually forage in small groups of four to eight birds. However, they can hunt alone or in larger groups of up to 60 birds.
Protecting Slaty Egrets
The slaty egret depends a lot on seasonal marshes. Sadly, these marshes are in danger from human activities. People drain wetlands for farming. They also control floods and build dams, like on the Kafue River. Other threats include soil washing away into rivers and taking water for farms.
New plants that are not native to the area can also cause problems. People disturbing the birds, too many animals grazing, and harvesting reeds also harm their homes. In Botswana, a big threat to their resting and nesting spots is the burning of reed beds.
Even some animals can be a threat. African elephants (Loxodonta africana) might accidentally step on nests. African fish eagles (Haliaetus vocifer) sometimes eat their eggs or young. These things can affect how many young birds survive.
 | Frances Mary Albrier |
 | Whitney Young |
 | Muhammad Ali |
