Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias

Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Ciconiiformes
Family: Ardeidae
Genus: Ardea

Description

The great blue heron is the largest heron in North America. It stands three to four feet tall and has a wingspan of almost six feet. It has blue-gray feathers on most of its body and a plume of feathers on its chest and back. It has a long, pointed yellow bill and long legs. Adults have white on the top of their heads and long black plumes above their eyes.

Range

The great blue heron breeds from southern Canada south to the West Indies and Mexico. It winters as far north as southern Alaska and southern New England. It is also found in the Galapagos Islands.

Habitat

The great blue heron is found in marshes, rivers, lakes, salt water shores, and ponds.

Diet

The great blue heron hunts for food during the day and at night. It stands in the water and waits for prey like frogs and fish to pass by and then grabs them with its long bill. It also eats salamanders, lizards, snakes, shrimps, crabs, crayfish, dragonflies, grasshoppers, aquatic insects, and occasionally birds and small mammals like mice.

Life Cycle

The female great blue heron lays three to seven eggs on a shallow platform made of sticks and twigs and lined with soft material. The nest is usually in a tall tree, but it may be built in the reeds or on a cliff edge. The eggs hatch in about a month and the chicks fledge when they are about two months old. Great blue herons nest in colonies. They usually nest in the same spot from year-to-year. They may even use the same nest.

Behavior

The great blue heron migrates in the fall, although some populations in the southern part of their range stay where they are. The great blue heron usually tucks its head into an S-shape when it is resting and flying.