Little Egret on Bank's Marsh near Southport

As a bonus to seeing the Ross's Goose mentioned in my previous post, I walked a little further round the sea wall at Banks and saw this beautiful Little Egret taking off. 

Little Egret are small, all-white herons with black legs, yellow feet, and a black bill. They are native to warmer climates but have expanded their range, possibly due to climate change, into the UK. The first significant numbers appeared in the UK in 1989, with the first successful breeding in Dorset in 1996. 

Although once a highly switchable bird, Little Egrets are now a common sight in the UK, particularly around the coasts and estuaries of southern England and Wales, after a range expansion from continental Europe. They first bred in the UK in 1996 and are now established with sustainable breeding populations, though they are still expanding their range further north. 

They are now a resident species with sustainable breeding populations in the UK, though their numbers increase in the autumn and winter with arrivals from continental Europe.