I was at Chesil Beach early this morning, when the sun is still low enough to provide near perfect lighting conditions, which is what you need when you're trying to film a bird as white as a Little Egret.
Although very common now, these birds still seem special to me as I can remember birdwatching in the late 1960's when they were unheard of in this country. Some articles online state that they first arrived in the 1950's but it was actually not until the spring of 1970 that anything other than occasional vagrants were seen. The species remained rare through the 70's but numbers slowly built up until they became a regular sight by the end of the 80's. Again, the statement often quoted online that they became established in 1989 is incorrect. It was more of a gradual increase through the 80's and 90's. What cannot be doubted is that the first UK breeding record was on Brownsea Island in 1996.
The same thing may be happening with two other egrets, Great and Cattle.
Those were Cattle Egrets, which are now a regular winter visitor in this area, particularly between Abbotsbury and Portesham where a flock of up to 30 birds is often present. Great Egrets seem to come and go throughout the year, with Radipole and Lodmoor usually holding one or two outside the breeding season.