Birmingham Audubon Society

Who's That Fishing?

By Shirley Ferrell

The Great Blue Heron, Ardea herodias, is Alabama's tallest year-round wading bird and the tallest heron in North America.  This bird stands about four feet high with a wingspan of six feet and weighs between 5-8 pounds. This bird may fool you when it is "hunkered down." It will squat down, pull its neck back and look only three feet high. This bird flies with long, slow wing beats, long legs extend beyond the tail, and the S-shaped neck folded back on itself. This bird's has a bluish-gray body with a white crown and black "eyebrow" stripes that extend into long, black plumes behind the head. Longer, shaggy feathers are found at the base of the throat and on the back.  The large, heavy bill is yellow. There is one subspecies of Great Blue that is all white. This bird is mostly found in Florida but it has been seen in Alabama. This white morph of the Great blue Heron is not the same bird as the Great Egret.

These birds hunt in fresh, salt or brackish waters. No matter how large or small the water area, from the Gulf Coast, to Lake Guntersville to a small, wooded creek, you may find a Great Blue Heron feeding on slow-moving or calm waters. They will quietly stalk or patiently wait for their food to wander by. Then with a rapid strike with their long, sharp bills they catch their meal and swallow it whole.  These birds are carnivores and eat a diet of fish, amphibians, reptiles, invertebrates, and small mammals and will even eat small or baby birds!  These birds will eat the fish from small goldfish ponds to large catfish ponds.

Although these large birds hunt or feed in small groups or solitary, they nest in colonies, called rookeries, of a few pairs to over a hundred pairs. Male birds will start looking for suitable nesting territory in tall trees near water in February. When a suitable location is found, the male will display his feathers, and stretch his body with his beak straight up in the air. He may also display feathers and snap his beak to make noises. When a female is attracted by the display the male will bring sticks to the female to fashion into a platform type nest. Many times birds return to their former nests. Old nests are cleaned of old debris and refurbished for use. In Birmingham, a great place to see Great Blue Herons and other heron species nesting is on the island at East Lake Park!

The female will incubate 3-5 eggs for about 27 days. Both parents regurgitate food for the babies.  In 60 days the baby birds can fly away form the nest, but they continue to return back "home" for food from the parents for a few more weeks.  Why hunt when mom and dad will provide the food!

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Birmingham, AL 35201

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