What’s That Bird?: Great Blue Heron

The Feathered Desert Podcast

Summary:A three-minute podcast from the hosts of The Feathered Desert about individual bird species found in the desert Southwest.

For our hearing impaired listeners, a transcript of this podcast follows the show notes on Podbean.

Show Notes:Song provided by Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, recorded by Paul Marvin.

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Transcript

Host voice - Welcome to the Feathered Desert’s What’s That Bird? A three-minute glimpse into the birds that we share this amazing desert landscape with.

Kiersten - The Great Blue Heron is the largest heron in North America with a height of 4.5 feet and a wing span of six feet. The name comes from the blue-gray feathers that cover most of the body. The face is white with a white stripe down the middle of the head. A black cap on the head with a black plume that curves delicately off the nape of the neck, adds to its regal look. The long neck is a brownish gray with longer feathers creating a fringed look at the base of the throat. The long dagger shaped beak is yellow on the bottom mandible and darker on the top mandible. An all-white version of the Great Blue Heron can be seen in Florida. Scientists are still debating whether this is a separate species or a color morph. In flight, the Great Blue Heron folds its neck into an S-shape and holds its long, gray legs straight back creating an easily identifiable silhouette.

This large bird is found throughout NA. Many live year-round through the mid-range of the United States from California to New England. Others spend the colder winters in Mexico and migrate to the upper United States and mid-Canadian ranges in summer. Their preferred habitat revolves around water as they are a wading bird which means they stand in water up to their knees hunting for fish, amphibians, and small water mammals. They can often be seen standing patiently on the edges of rivers, streams, ponds, and lakes waiting for the perfect moment to catch a bite to eat. They locate prey by sight and swallow food whole. Within the drier areas of the SW, herons are attracted to man made lakes and golf courses with water traps.

When humans encounter herons, they are often silent and many people believe they do not make any noise at all, but they are capable of sound. It is quite shocking to hear their rattling call but once you know what you’re hearing, it’s quite distinctive. (Heron call plays)

During breeding season these herons nest in colonies near water. They create shallow platform nests in trees using larger sticks as the base and finer, softer material as the lining. Nests can sometimes be found on the ground and in reed beds but are most often in trees. Nests are reused year after year and herons will return to the same breeding areas every spring. Pairs are monogamous within a breeding season but usually pick a new mate every year. Males will arrive at the nesting sites before the females, chose a nest, and court the females as they arrive. These nesting sites can include anywhere from 5 to 500 nesting pairs.

Song provided by Macauly Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology recorded by Paul Marvin.