Nests are made of sticks and twigs, two feet in diameter, sometimes lined with leaves, moss and grass. Incubation is performed by both sexes and takes 23-24 days. Breeding resident egrets arrive in April. Post-breeding dispersal occurs from July to October Migrants also pass through the state at this time. Egrets are rare winter residents, sometimes staying on the Tinicum Refuge in Delaware and Philadelphia counties.
Night herons have heavy bodies and short, thick necks.
A species of special concern in Pennsylvania, this bird is 20 inches in length, with a 44-inch wingspread. Immatures are heavily streaked with brown and lack the red eye of the adult. They fly in loose flocks and often roost communally. Usually inactive during the day, they hunt at night. Call is a single kwawk , most often given at night.