Both the cattle egret and the little egret go hunting for food during the day and rest at night, whereas the night heron emerges, as its name suggests, at night.
黃頭鷺和小白鷺的生活習性是白天活動，夜間歇息；夜鷺則晝伏夜出。在夏天，夜鷺頭頂也會長出兩、三根很長的白飾羽，但比起其牠鷺鳥，牠的脖子較短，飛行時呈駝背狀，不似白鷺飄逸。