Herons on the Lookout

by Jennie Breeze

Title

Herons on the Lookout

Artist

Jennie Breeze

Medium

Photograph - Original Img_0968

Description

Photograph was taken of Great Blue Heron chicks in Huntington Beach, Calif. The great blue herons typically nest in colonies. They prefer tall trees, but sometimes nest in low shrubs. Females produce two to seven eggs, which both parents protect and incubate. Chicks can survive on their own by about two months of age. Their average life span in the wild is15 years. Great blue herons' size (3.2 to 4.5 feet) and wide wingspan (5.5 to 6.6 feet) make them a joy to see in flight. They can cruise at some 20 to 30 miles an hour. Their weight is about 4.6 to 7.3 lbs . Their size is relative to a 6ft man. The tall, long-legged great blue heron is the most common and largest of North American herons. Great blue herons are waders, typically seen along coastlines, in marshes, or near the shores of ponds or streams. They are expert fishers. Herons snare their aquatic prey by walking slowly, or standing still for long periods of time and waiting for fish to come within range of their long necks and blade-like bills. The deathblow is delivered with a quick thrust of the sharp bill, and the prey is swallowed whole. Great blue herons have been known to choke to death by attempting to swallow fish too large for their long, S-shaped necks. Though they are best known as fishers, mice constitute a large part of their diet, and they also eat insects and other small creatures. They are Ardea Herodias in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water in wetlands. The most commonly employed hunting technique of the species is wading slowly with its long legs through shallow water and quickly spearing fish or frogs with its long, sharp bill. Feeding behaviors variably have consisted of standing in one place, probing, pecking, walking at slow speeds, moving quickly, flying short distances and alighting, hovering over water and picking up prey, diving headfirst into the water, alighting on water feet-first, jumping from perches feet-first, and swimming or floating on the surface of the water.

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December 2nd, 2013

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