Did you see the shape of its beak, Angela?
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Yes - it was a slim one like an egret rather than a fat one like a stork (I think)
Could it be another sort of heron? I was pondering about a young flamingo as they can be pale, but obviously not with a beak like that.
Ah yes - a friend mentioned a flamingo that had escaped a UK zoo and ended up in France but I think she was joking!
She wasnāt, I saw that.
The flamingo escaped from a zoo in Cornwall, despite having clipped wings, and was next seen in Brittany. The UK zoo decided to let her have her freedom and I hope she manages to get far enough south to cope with the winter.
Long trip sheās got ahead of her then! It was frosty here last night
Fingers crossed for her, name of Frankie. Article below.
We have flamingos around here and they can cope with pretty cold temperatures. The ones at the African Reserve in Sigean are here all year and we saw quite a few in Gruissan the other day, standing in the lagoons.
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This video gives a good explanation of the various differencesā¦ fascinating 
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Very interesting thank you @stella. Next time I spot a big egret I shall note the beak colour!
Iām a bit puzzled about the garde-boeufs though because Iāve only ever seen pure white ones. Perhaps they only keep an eye on cattle in the winter? 
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Breeding colours can cause doubtsā¦. garde-bÅuf birds have pure white plumage except when they are āflirtingā 
And, as with many things, size matters 
Garde-bÅuf are smaller and stockierā¦ and have a very distinctive way of scuttling across the ground. We see them in large numbers normally, so itās obvious what they areā¦ when I see the odd one or two white birdsā¦ thatās when I have to sometimes do a double-take to check. Size, beak, leg colour.. that sort of thingā¦ and, of course, check the pupils in both eyes
Cattle egrets are little sweeties 
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When we get the small white birds in with the cattle, there can be up to about 50 at a timeā¦
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And then when one tries to photograph them they all disappear! 
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Yes, itās a glorious sight to see the garde-bÅuf in such numbers.
When the cattle are moved out of a particular field, some birds stay behind but, mostly, the group follows their pals to pastures new.
On the other hand, weāve seen one or two birds arrive at an animal-free field a few days before the cattle actually arrive. Bizarrely, itās as if theyāve a direct link with the farmer and know what heās planning.
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Apparently some of you have complained about these bugs, well you can eat them!
I saw something like that once, someone told me it was a geneset (canāt remember spelling).
We had this funny visitor a couple of weeks back:
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What a beauty, dear little salamander
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Itās a Genet ā¦very 
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The Longtail tits are back
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