Grieving the Great Blue Heron
With all that is going on in our world today and friends facing terrible situations, some life-threatening, I still find myself grieving the loss of the beautiful Great Blue Heron dying in its nest. So, so sad. A few weeks ago, I watched one of the pair enticing the other with their courting displays. I stood not 15 ft. from them observing the male flying to & fro with twigs and limbs gathered to build the nest and the female receiving each limb and positioning it in just the perfect place, making adjustments as needed. We watched with, perhaps, a little chuckle inside as the male would mount her, and her spreading her wings slightly and crouching. It was over quickly but would occur numerous times. I thought, “They want to make sure they get some babies!” Last Saturday, December 13, I saw one of them return to the nest and a lot of “fluff” bounce up slightly. I thought , “Surely, there couldn’t be chicks yet!” I realized, as I focused my lens on them, it was one of the “agreed” pair lying down so flat in the nest. So, that made me wonder if their were eggs to be kept warm. But, now we know…what none of us wants to be the case, the mate has died in the nest they built to raise their young and give to us, the admiring birding community, so much joy. Now, we find ourselves wondering how this will play out. This beautiful living mate with its bright blue lore signaling it is ready to create more Great Blue Herons, how will this go? What will happen to the lifeless mate in the nest? I find myself now wanting to visit the surviving mate…and following that…just not watch....
Read MoreGreat Blue Heron vs. Snake
While visiting Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge near Titusville, FL, I was fortunate to witness a new sight with one of my very favorite water birds, the Great Blue Heron. I had been watching him move about tactically in the marsh and saw he was very focused on his journey. I thought, “He’s looking for a nice fish for lunch!” All of a sudden he lunged forward in heron-style with great precision and there was his lunch dangling from his long spear-like beak…a snake!! The next few moments were impressive. I estimated the snake to be about 4-5 ft. long of considerable girth. He had caught the snake behind the head…smart move. Guess he had done that a few times. It was so interesting to see him work with the snake jerking and flipping the slimy creature until he got it just like he wanted it and then the descent down the throat began. UGH!!! The heron stretched his long neck out to give a direct path to his luncheon treat to travel and pretty soon one could see the movement down the throat. It certainly gave new meaning to “Bottoms Up!” And just as we human do, he stepped just a few feet forward and grabbed a drink to help wash it all down. Just felt a little blessed to see that whole process. ...
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