Ardea alba - hunting: #1 (motion study) (4808' N 1636' E)

Description:

2011-07-15 Lower Austria, district Gnserndorf - Schnauer Schlitz (Danube National Park, 150 msm Quadrant 7865/4).German name: SilberreiherNot my best shots of the species and taken at great distance (those shots are crops), but showing some hunting postures (other shots linked below).It is stalking through thick growth of Hippuris vulgaris, in front you can see Nuphar lutea, and in the background Phragmites australis.Synonymy: it seems that Egretta alba is now (as of 2011) the official name; synonyms still in use are Ardea alba and Casmerodius albus - corrected, see quote of Sciadopitys below: to Ardea alba.