Bird of the Week: Great Blue Heron

Stalking the shallow waters of the Metroparks, the Great Blue Heron is an expert fisher. Standing statue-like they will look for aquatic prey in the water, on a sunny day you may see one spread out their large wings to block the sun’s reflection on the water. The s-shape and special vertebrae in their neck allow them to quickly strike and stab their prey with their spear-like bill. Despite their large size, they only weigh about 5 to 6 pounds and nest in large nests at the top of trees. Look for the breeding colony at Kensington Metropark, you can see it from the boardwalk on Wildwing Trail. The breeding colony at Kensington is called a rookery, which is a large collection of nests high in a group of trees. Happy Birding!