. Birds of America;. Birds -- North America. PhotiJ uy U. L. l-iiilL-y and H. T. GREAT BLUE HERON. downward with a stroke which is quicker than the eye can follow and seldom misses its mark. In a second the fish or frog has disa])peared, and fii'il" by H. k l.'!.i ul UuUini I'ub. Cu. A COLONY OF GREAT BLUE HERONS the surface, and sliding it into the water again so gently as t() cause hardly a ripple ; and woe to the crawfish or salamander that does not observe that approach. Like most Herons, the Great Blue is a solitary bird in its habits except during the breeding
. Birds of America;. Birds -- North America. PhotiJ uy U. L. l-iiilL-y and H. T. GREAT BLUE HERON. downward with a stroke which is quicker than the eye can follow and seldom misses its mark. In a second the fish or frog has disa])peared, and fii'il" by H. k l.'!.i ul UuUini I'ub. Cu. A COLONY OF GREAT BLUE HERONS the surface, and sliding it into the water again so gently as t() cause hardly a ripple ; and woe to the crawfish or salamander that does not observe that approach. Like most Herons, the Great Blue is a solitary bird in its habits except during the breeding season. Then the birds show a strongly marked gregarious instinct by forming colonies, generally in isolated swamps, where they build their huge nests and bring up their young, which are fed by regurgitation. These heronries are most interesting institutions for the bird-student. Occasionally several nests are placed in a single tree, and frequently colonies are foimd which include 150 or more nests. Unless the birds are seriously molested they are likely to return for many successive years to the same nesting-site. It is well known that members of the Heron family feed to a great' extent on fish and other forms of aquatic life, and consequently do not live far from water. The Great Blue Herons at times depart from this family trait and visit hillsides, cultivated fields, and drier meadows in search of pocket gophers, ground squirrels, and field mice, which they greedily devour. Pellets collected in an inland ne;ting colony of these Herons showed that a very large proportion of the food of the young is made up of these injin"ious rodents. The Herons, like other flesh- eating birds, digest their food rapidly and are disposed to gorge themselves when opportunity offers. It is fair to assume as a low average that a pair of Herons with four or five young will consume twelve to fifteen gophers per day. George Please note that these images are extracted from scanned p
Size: 1906px × 1311px
Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookauthorpearsont, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, bookyear1923
