Abstract
The egrets were doomed. Everyone
agreed on that. The new wealth created
by the conquest of America had, in
turn, created a large middle class whose
women demanded the finest fashions
- including the lovely plumes of the
egret to adorn their enormous collections
of hats. Since the birds developed
the plumes only during the breeding
season, collecting the feathers meant
killing the adults and leaving eggs or
chicks to die. Unable to reproduce, the
egrets faced almost certain extinction.