… here is our friend the Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) from the Squaw Creek NWR, in northwest Missouri (this is the same heron I featured in yesterday’s post). This guy was an excellent fisherman, catching many more fish than not. I was surprised at the small size of the fish he was catching. In the hour or so that I watched and photographed him fishing, each of the fish was very small, maybe 2 inches in length. So, considering the target size, I’d say he would qualify for the “Expert” category :o) . Here is one of many sequences I captured of a fish being caught:
In this first image, the heron has just snagged a fish and is beginning to withdraw it from the water:
In the next image, the heron has the fish tightly contained, near the end of his beak:
With a few, quick moves, the heron relocates the fish closer to his mouth:
With a quick motion, the heron “throws” the fish “down the hatch”:
“Yum, that was good!”
If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share this link with others who you feel may enjoy it!