For the Birds: The Great Blue Heron- Four Feet Tall

Great Blue Heron in flight
Photo by John Riegsecker 

By Christine Southwick

Which bird has a six foot wing-span, catches live food without flying, and weighs less than seven pounds?

Huge slow wing beats, long neck pulled back into an aerodynamic  “S”, and long yellow legs trailing behind is the sight of the Great Blue Heron.

Great Blue Heron with fish.
Photo by Doug Parrott

Great Blue Herons prefer shallow bays, estuaries, and wetlands- the wilder, the better. These largest herons of North America are solitary hunters. The males claim the prime hunting spots, with females and juvies mostly relegated to drainage ditches, smaller wetlands, or fields with nearby water.

A hunting Great Blue Heron is a study in patience. Standing at the water’s edge, or in water up to 20 inches deep, this heron will stand statue-like, or move Tai-Chi slow until it sees its next meal. With its neck adapted for lightning speed strikes, it spears or catches its prey—fish, insects, amphibians, frogs, snakes, small mammals, or an unlucky bird. It juggles the food around until it can swallow it whole. GBH’s have been known to choke to death when the prey was too large.

Great Blue Herons usually nest in tall trees in/near mature forests, in marshes or islands, but are very adaptive. I once saw Great Blue Herons nesting on a large cactus overlooking the Sea of Cortez! 

Feeding time
Photo by Doug Parrott

Usually they nest in groups from a 100 up to 500 nests. Males bring long sticks to the females who then incorporate them into the nest platform. These colonies are a noisy place, especially when an eagle flies nearby, and most of the adults call the alarm and take wing. The two-to-six nestlings also noisily demand their feedings of regurgitated food from both their parents.

Here in the Puget Sound area these heronries have recently become smaller, more often having 20-50 nests. It is believed that three factors may be contributing to these smaller heronries:

• Increased population of Bald Eagles, with reduced habitat for Bald Eagle foraging;
• Reduced habitat wild enough/ remote enough to suit large heronry needs;
• Increased noise and human disturbance to cause abandonment of larger heronries.

There are several heronries nearby, and if you have a chance, go watch the magnificent Great Blue Herons as they take off, and land in amongst branches. You’ll long remember this sight.  If you do go, talk softly, and leave your dogs at home.

Christine Southwick is a Board member of the Puget Sound Bird Observatory and is their Winter Urban Color-banding Project Manager. She has completed the 40-hour class to become a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat Steward.

For previous For the Birds columns, click the link under the Features section on the main webpage.