Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)

Heron, Egret, and Bittern family (Ardeidae)
Great Blue Heron is a large wading bird, reaching 4.5 ft long and a 6.5 ft wingspan. Its head is grayish with a white face and crown and black from above the eye to the back of the head with a short black plume off the back of the head. The long, pointed bill is a dull yellow. Its long neck is rusty gray with black and white streaking on its foreneck and long plume-like feathers on the lower neck. It has grayish blue flight feathers, back, and belly; black shoulder; rusty thighs; and rusty and black stripes on its flanks. Its long legs are grayish. At the beginning of the breeding season, it has plumes on the lower back and more orange to the bill and legs. All white birds are found in Caribbean and south Florida and was once thought to be a separate species, the Great White Heron. Juvenile is similar, but are duller in color, have no plumes, and have a blackish gray crown. The call is a harsh croak. Flies with neck coiled. Usually solitary, except for breeding. Nests in usually single species rookeries usually near wetlands. Mainly eats fish by spearing them with its pointed bill, but will eat many other prey items. Forages mostly at dusk and dawn. Found near open water and in wetlands mostly in North and Central America, the West Indies, and the Galápagos Islands. Listed as a species of special concern in NJ, RI, and WI.

Copyright Brett Miley