They have a spot to build on, and some branches already there. Must be time have that ‘serious’ conversation.
At this point they are both on their best behavior.
The squawking and fighting come later.
Click, or double tap, any image below to view the gallery.
It may not be spring yet but it doesn’t stop some of the male Great Blues from calling out for the lucky ladies.
You can hear their hoarse calls a long way off. Males will start now and keep looking through February.
I don’t know what makes a female pick one guy over another. There was one poor Heron waiting until summer last year.
It finally worked out and they raised a nice pair of young.
All she needs is a suitor. Each time a Great Blue flies over the swamp she stands and calls out.
He’s not here yet.
He was standing, looking up over the edge of the marsh watching. I wasn’t sure what he was up to so following rule # 1 I grabbed the shot.
He followed Heron rule # 1, wait to see what the ‘people thing’ is going to do. So, for a few minutes we looked at each other. Nothing exciting at all.
There’s no place for me to go here, water and marsh on either side, so I moved forward.
Now he knew what I was doing and promptly jumped up and left.
Click, or double tap, any image to view the gallery.
What saved these images was getting the shoulder, secondary, wing feathers. The bigger wading birds have a line of wing feathers that run about halfway down the wing width.
In the right light and position they can help make a decent image. It’s these little things that can make a good wildlife photograph.
The Black-crowned Night Heron is a smaller Heron, but very quick. Even knowing exactly where he was didn’t help much at lift off.
In an instant this guy was off and going low over the marsh.
This series is no award winner by any means however the fall colors are OK.
One of us is losing it… the web site or me.
I was sure this was published yesterday, or the day before. However I can not find the article here.
So, a young Night Heron ( I said something about camouflage, not seeing it at first, blah, blah. Good thing I’m taking some time off).
As I viewed these photographs I realized it’s been months since I published any Herons flying low like this in a swamp.
In a few months we will be tired of them, this is from a rookery and Herons will be everywhere. Nothing is happening there now, too early. However, 2 Great Blues did show up and hang around the other day.
When I see these birds, close to me I can’t help but think they might have been born here, in this rookery. It could explain why they are comfortable having people nearby.
A place I have seen and photographed hundreds of times. If you visit this web site you too have seen it. (Click here to view a recent shot).
I don’t remember ever taking a photograph of that spot from one of the dikes.
Above was taken as I walked down the side of this marsh, actually it was a remote plantation rice field a few hundred years ago.
The island has a single (and shaky) dead tree. Here it is filled with Roseate Spoonbills and a Great Blue Heron. Another Heron is fishing in the shallows, and what you can’t see is the scores Alligators in the marsh grass.
Scenes like this just reinforce how beautiful the Lowcountry wild lands are.
