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The population of white herons (Egretta alba) at Waitangiroto Nature Reserve has been monitored since 1944. The number of breeding adults (estimated from maximum number of nests at the height of the breeding season, and first recorded in 1958) has increased from 26 to c.100, with a concurrent increase in the number of chicks hatched and fledged. Population growth was greatest between 1964-69 and 1980-84. Chick mortality appears to result largely from the effects of westerly and southwesterly storms in October and November, although infanticide, siblicide, and low levels of predation may account for some chickdeaths. The mean number of fledglings nest-I has decreased over time as the number of nests has increased, suggesting a density dependent response. The white herons that “invaded” New Zealand from Australia in 1952 and 1957 did not appear to recruit into the breeding population.