Very rare visitor.

One record: a juvenile spent about four hours perched in a tree of a Fishers Green garden on 12 August 1994.

Very rare visitor

Three records: two flying over a Great Ashby Garden on 19 June 2020, one flying over an Old Town Garden on 20 November 2022 and one flying over Fairlands Valley Lakes on 3 December 2023.

Increasing visitor.

Little Egrets are recent colonisers of Britain. Prior to 1985 there had only been two records from Hertfordshire, since 1994 they have been recorded annually, and in 2011 bred for the first time in the County. Winter roosts are being established in the Colne, Lea and Mimram Valleys.

The first record for Stevenage was of one, flying north over Fairlands Way on 25 November 2006.

There were three further records prior to 2010; one flew through Fairlands Valley Lakes on 10 August 2007, one over Bragbury End on 20 March 2009 and one at Fairlands Valley Lakes on 6 July 2009.

Between 2010 and 2019 they were recorded from: Aston Allotments (one flew over on 3 November 2015); Aston Brook (9 December 2012, 18 December 2018 and, 11 November 2019); Aston End (4 January 2015); Fairlands Valley Lakes (5 February 2012, 15 to 22 July 2012 and, 1 January 2019); Golf Course, Bragbury End (15 February 2010); Gresley Way (9 December 2012); Norton Green Tip (27 December 2018); Old Town (one on flooded School Playing Fields on 17 July 2015); River Beane, Aston (1 December 2015 and, 15 November 2016); Six Hills Way (2 flying over on 19 March 2015); Stevenage Brook (5, 6 and 12 January 2010 and, 1 December 2014). 

Since 2020 they have since been recorded at: Aston Brook, Gresley Way (13 January 2020, 17 January 2021, 28 November 2021 and 27 December 2022; 7 and 27 January 2023; two on 20 January 2023; one on 17 February 2023; two on 24 February 2023; two on 3 and 8 March 2023; one between 16 and 21 March 2023; two on 31 August 2023; one on 5 December 2023); Fairlands Valley Lakes (23 March 2020, 7 July 2020, two flying over 30 April 2021, one on 6 September 2021, 11 March 2022, 10 and 12 May 2022, one flying over on 31 May 2022, one on 21 July 2022, one on 13 September 2022, one on 22 October 2022, one on 22 December 2022, two on 27 December 2022, one on 30 December 2022, up to four between 31 December 2022 and 22 January 2023, one on 14 April 2023, one flying over on 1 May 2023, one on 13, 17 and 18 July 2023, one on 1 and 4 September 2023, one flying over on 3 and 5 November 2023, one on 20 January 2024 one on 2, 6 and 12 February 2024, two on 7 March 2024, one on 8, 12, 24, 25, 26 and 27 March 2024, one flying over on 14 April 2024); Golf Course (11 March 2020 and 4 May 2024); Magpie Crescent (one flying over on 11 December 2022); Norton Green Tip (7 July 2020 and 7 May 2024); Ridlins Mire (one on 12 January 2024); Ridlins Water Meadow (9 and 16 March 2020 and, 2 April 2020); Ridlins Wood: one on 3 April 2023; one flying north over Stevenage on 1 April 2020; one over a Stevenage Garden on 21 May 2020.

Common non-breeding visitor.

Common visitors at all times of the year to Fairlands Valley Lakes (from where they were first recorded in April 1975) and at any of Stevenage’s ponds and ditches. They are also known to raid garden fishponds.

Grey Herons suffer in hard winters and during the winter of 1962/63 the British Breeding population was halved, during that winter the remains of one was found by a pond at Symonds Green.

The most seen together are four at Fairlands Valley Lakes on 6 July 2009.

The 2012 Winter Atlas recorded their presence from six of the tetrads covering Stevenage.