Cattle Egrets feeding at rubbish dump

On 29th June 2011, Dato’ Dr Amar-Singh HSS encountered 150-200 Cattle Egrets (Bubulcus ibis), most in breeding plumage, in a rubbish dump at the outskirts of a town in the Malaysian state of Perak. There were a few Intermediate Egrets (Mesophoyx intermedia) together with these Cattle Egrets. Also present nearby were many Grey (Ardea cinerea) and Purple Herons (A. purpurea). These herons were not at the dump.

“Sad to see birds foraging on rubbish but a part of life these days,” wrote Amar. “Cattle Egrets are generally migratory but also tend to overstay, here attracted by rubbish.”

An earlier post documents a Cattle Egret scavenging in urban Singapore LINK.