The Great Blue Heron

The great blue heron has been spotted at many places we visit … down by the bay, the pond, out west, and in wetlands. It was a challenge choosing some of my favourites to share today.

great blue heron at craftygardener.ca
great blue heron

This heron is a large wading bird, in fact it is the largest heron in Canada

great blue heron

You can’t see me, I’m hiding in the shrubs at the pond.

the great blue heron at Whiffen Spit in December 2017, photo taken by craftygardener.ca
great blue heron at Whiffen Spit

At Whiffen Spit, BC, the heron sits on a log perch looking out over the water.

preening reflection

The herons love to preen themselves and take on some amazing poses while doing it.

great blue heron at the Reid's Dairy pond September 14, 2014 - craftygardener.ca
more preening

They appear to be blue-grey colour with a black stripe by their eye.

the heron down by the bay taken by craftygardener.ca

Down by the bay is a favourite spot to see them, in the rushes, at the water edge, and in the turtle pond.

great blue heron at craftygardener.ca
a balancing act

How do they keep their balance? I certainly can’t stand as still as they do for such a long period of time. Almost like a statue, don’t you think?

great blue heron at craftygardener.ca

The move slowly and always look intently at the water, just waiting for a tasty snack. When they do spot something they move very quickly.

a great blue heron at the Albert Head Lagoon in BC, photo by craftygardneer.ca
at the Albert Head Lagoon in BC

While visiting the Albert Head Lagoon in BC, we spotted this great blue heron wading along the shore hoping to catch some fish for lunch.

the heron in flight captured by craftygardener.ca
in flight at Zwick’s Park

At Zwick’s Park this heron was captured in flight. What a huge wing span.

the heron in flight captured by craftygardener.ca
Heron in flight at Zwicks Park

Nature never fails to amaze me. Here are some of my other heron photos.

13 Responses

  1. Eileen

    Hello, I enjoyed seeing all your favorite Heron photos. They are one of my favorite birds. It is hard to pick a favorite though, I love them all.

    Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Saturday, enjoy your day and weekend! PS, thank so much for your visit and comment.

    • Crafty Gardener

      I can never resist photographing them, even though I already have folders full of images 🙂 Have a lovely weekend.

  2. Cath@Home

    No wonder you had trouble deciding which ones to post…..great photographs and a magnificent bird!

    • Crafty Gardener

      Loved all your green photos, my favourite colour. It sure was hard to choose photos for this week, love taking heron photos no matter how many I have. Enjoy the day.

  3. tomthebackroadstraveller

    …rarely do I get the opportunity to photograph heron up close like this. They are always so far away and my lens just isn’t lone enough. Thanks for sharing these gorgeous images.

    • Crafty Gardener

      I’m fortunate to have a Nikon P900 with a powerful zoom of 83x and it gets right up close. Thanks for stopping by.

  4. David Gascoigne

    Some great images of Great Blue Heron engaged in various activities. Always a great bird to see and one with which even the casual observer is familiar.

  5. Myrtle

    My goodness Linda, these are gorgeous photos of great Blue Herons

    The one of the Heron opening it Wings for flight was amazing. I have never seen one in flight to realize how large their wings are.
    Thank you for sharing these photos.

  6. bill burke

    You captured some beautiful heron images. Thanks for sharing and have a wonderful weekend.

  7. Anni

    Exceptional and magnificent series!! Love them all but the close-up images are so perfect!

    Happy weekend, and you linking with us at I’d Rather B Birdin’ is appreciated. Thanks.

  8. Sallie (FullTime-Life)

    I never tire of seeing this beautiful bird and you captured all of the behaviors that are so interesting, as well as the great closeup portraits. I always think of the GBH as the epitome of patience….the way they can stand perfectly still for so long and then dart quickly for their prey, as you say. Lovely post.

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