Monday, November 5, 2012 Great Blue Heron


Sunrise 8: 32 am, sunset 4:48 pm, length of day 8 hours and 16 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 3 seconds shorter.

Bright Venus and Half Moon played peek-a-boo with the clouds this morning. The brisk north wind clamped down with temps hovering around freezing. By late afternoon a light snow blanketed the ground. No forecast this time; it's anyone's guess what the weather will be!

Serendipity: the accident of finding something delightful when you are not looking for it.

Much about birding, and life, is serendipity.

I just happened to arrive at Lowell Point Beach this afternoon around 3:30 when an adult GREAT BLUE HERON flew over my car and headed into the spruce forest. I grabbed the camera, parked, and searched the silent trees. Once again, it flew overhead, circled and landed right where I could easily see it. I braced the camera against a convenient "No Parking" sign for stability in the dim light and clicked off a few shots.

Although it seemed a bit early to roost, Standard Time not withstanding, the heron probably considered the high tide covering its favorite feeding spots and the dark gray skies marching in from the Gulf of Alaska primed to dump a load of snow. It felt like someone had left the freezer door open, with a fan on high, blowing cold air.

I walked backwards to the beach, watching the gangly bird sitting on the spruce branch watching me, a light gray form against the dark green foliage. It looked small and vulnerable, toughing out another winter in Alaska, one day (and night) at a time.

Happy Birding!
Carol Griswold
Sporadic Bird Report Reporter






Happy Birding!
Carol Griswold
Sporadic Bird Report Reporter


No comments:

Post a Comment