Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Huge Heron

Sometimes my life is like 'Groundhog Day' walking the same paths, doing the same chores, etc. Any change in scenery pops out like a red flag causing me to do a double take. Our lonesome Great Blue Heron has returned to the pond though I have not seen him/her this close to the fence!

Upon seeing it, I was alarmed. What in the world was it doing perched near the fence? Was it stuck? Was something wrong and how would I help that thing if it were in trouble? Mind you, this creature is extremely large and extremely shy. There is no food source that I know of where it was standing either. I was at loss for words as I ran back into the house to grab my camera. Once it saw my slow approach, its graceful wings flapped to safety in the sky, this time with no protest. Occasionally a funny squawk will escape its pointed bill during flight.
Okay, since nothing was wrong with it, maybe he/she wanted a sunny spot to rest after eating a slimy pond victim.
Look how beautiful he is! What perfect form and pointed toes!


Now that is normally where he rests...at the edge of the pond!

14 comments:

lisa said...

Those pictures of the Heron flying are just amazing! You did a great job!

V.L. Locey said...

They are stately birds aren`t they? I haven`t seen any here in PA yet, but I`m hoping too soon.

Tonia said...

Awesome Pictures!!!

Autumn Mist said...

Fabulous photos today! We have herons too.

Marg said...

What wonderful pictures. Herons are the best. I love to see them. I used to see a lot of them when I used to live in Charleston, S.C. Now I only have one or two up here in the upstate. This is my first visit to this blog and it is great. Our mom is big into taking in animals too.

Alison said...

Wow, what a majestic bird! He is absolutely gorgeous, great job capturing him! We have a heron that stops by our creek all the time but I have never had my camera when I walk up on him and scare him into flight. I always forget to take it and that he might be there! This year that shall change... ;-)

Kritter Keeper at Farm Tails said...

thanks you all for your comments...marg and alison, tried to access your blogs...was unsuccessful!

Erica Houskeeper said...

These are lovely photos. Herons are the most incredible birds. We have one that visits our pond in Vermont every summer, and I see him every morning for weeks at a time. I'm always mesmerized by him. I'm so glad you were able to capture his visit!

City girl turned Country Girl said...

Great pictures of him!!! Very neat, and I love how the deer were in that last picture!

AJ-OAKS said...

Oh my gosh those pics are fantastic!! Your camera must take pics at super speed to get those great shots. What a beautiful bird. And how wonderful to see him/her so close!

Kathleen Coy said...

Amazing photos, I love herons! It's such a thrill to watch them.

Danielle said...

Furry cool! We had a heron once by our barn once. Nobody had figured out why it was there 'cause we are 5 miles from the nearest lake. It was interesting to see, though!

Rural Rambler said...

Kritter Keeper you have some awesome captures there of your heron. The second to last picture of him in flight shows how graceful they can be. I love his long legs in that picture. We have a resident heron and we call him Henry. We have to name all our critters!! Cool post :)

Janean said...

wow, to capture the flight! very nice........