One of the pleasures of living beside our little river is that we are often treated to the sight of a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) as it hunts for a meal. I never tire of seeing these majestic birds, which can be 1.3 m (over four feet) tall. They are shy birds. If you are just driving by in your car, they stand very still and keep an eye on you as you pass by. But if you should stop and roll down a window, never mind climb out of the car, they rise silently on their great wings and quickly disappear up the river.
Great Blue Herons feed on small fish, amphibians, rodents, aquatic insects, crayfish and snails such as are found in shallow ponds, streams and wetlands. It is thought that their numbers have been slowly declining over the past 20 years and the reasons for this are not well understood. However, it may be that the heron decline is linked to that of one of their favorite foods. The numbers of many amphibians such as frogs have also been falling across the Great Lakes region.
I spotted this heron as I was walking along the road that borders the river. There is a dense hedgerow, and I had to watch for a spot that was clear enough to take a photograph through. The heron was watching me suspiciously. Once I found a little clearing, I only had a few seconds to take the picture before the bird took flight and quickly disappeared from sight.
Willow House Chronicles 
It’s a beautiful shot. The light and shadow add so much to the picture.
Great capture of the heron. I love watching them on the river or down by the bay.
Sheri — He/she is beautiful! A friend in Michigan has a heron rookery on her farm. It was far from human disturbances. The nests were clustered in what looked like woodland snags. Their nests were huge. Maybe another reason they are in decline is this type of habitat is also declining as new development moves in. Good post — barbara.
Thank you, Louise. i was lucky to get the picture through the branches and was pleased it turned out.
Crafty, thanks. They’re pretty amazing birds, neat to watch.
Barbara, Thanks for your thoughts. There are a number of heronries around here, all set off in dead trees in swamps where you can see them in the distance but not get a good photo. Those huge sticky nests are hard to miss!. In Ontario, the largest declines have been in the north away from populated areas, so development is not thought to be the issue. Forestry disturbances have also been ruled out because colonies have been protected since the mid 1980s with buffer zones. I’m sure habitat impacts are not helpful though.