In the past, farmers looked upon them as a symbol of good luck, but since the advent of insecticides, they have come to be seen only as the clumsy tramplers of seedlings in paddy fields.
而且，以往鷺鷥被農民視為好運將至的象徵，歡迎牠們在田間落腳，但隨著農藥代替鳥類成為撲滅蟲害的主力之後，鷺鷥在稻田中，只有被認為礙手礙腳、踐踏秧苗的份。