Posts Tagged: great blue heron

Hank Comes Through, Otters Romp, and a Late Look at the Eastons

On September 27, 2026 - Herons, Loons, Otters, Wildlife Photography

Hank teased me along the river this week. And when I went to visit the Eastons, the otters were romping around the pond.

The Vermont North By Hand Tour is coming up fast. Artists around the Upper Valley will be exhibiting. Some in their studios. Those of us without a proper studio have to make other plans. I’ll be set up at Sue Martin’s Farm on Route 5 on the Bradford – Fairlee town line. The tour map online still isn’t updated, but trust me, that’s where I’ll be. Sue will be showing off her stained glass and Carole Kitchel Bellew will be set up with her ceramic art. The map of the other artists is here. The tour is a great way to spend the day. Hope to see you there.

Wednesday evening I wasn’t feeling very energetic. It seemed like a nice evening to sit on the deck and finish my book. But one of the downsides of being a photographer is that you have to get going and, well, photograph things. The weather was perfect and I couldn’t come up with a good enough excuse to not go visit Hank, et al.

As I was putting the boat in the river, a lady paddled upstream. She said Hank was ‘just around the corner.’ He’d moved on by the time I made it around the corner. The river was pretty quiet. A couple northern flickers were chatting. And a green heron flew downstream, squawking as he went. I took the boat into the marsh to the section of shore that I’ve had such great luck finding the herons. There were a couple painted turtles basking. And starlings everywhere in the reeds. But no herons.

I sat and waited a bit. Still no herons. There was a cloud on the horizon and the sun was heading behind it. There was still time to work on that book. I headed home.

As I got back to the river, Hank flew in and landed in the shadows just upstream. There was a patch of sun along the shore between us and another upstream where the shore juts out a bit. I figured the odds were low of Hank cooperating and moving into the sun. But I waited. The sun came back out – barely above the hill. Hank did the inscrutable heron thing and stood stock still staring into the water.

The sun was almost gone before Hank moved. But he did. He headed upstream and stood on the edge of the patch of sun. I started shooting. I got off several shots. When I got home and checked the timestamps on the photos, Hank was in the sun 42 seconds between my first shot and when the sun disappeared. So, I got one photo. But entirely worth it! One of the nicest shots I’ve made all year. And a contender for the heron exhibit I’m working on.

Hank worked his way back downstream towards me, stalking something. And facing me. Suddenly he turned and struck right behind where he was standing. This would have been an amazing photo if we could see his face. Herons giveth and herons taketh away. I headed home, eager to see if the sunlight shot had worked.

Thursday was another nice evening. As I tossed the boat on the car, I noticed bees working on the last of the asters along the drive.

The bees are western honey bees (I think!).

There were several dozen bees and more insects working the flowers.

One more bee on one more aster. I headed down to the river.

No sign of Hank or his cronies as I went downstream. I poked around the marsh looking in all the nooks and crannies. And came up empty. Not a heron to be found.

The colors across the river were well turned. I headed home without anything to show for the effort.

Friday morning I headed up to visit the Eastons. It was an invigorating 38° when I put the boat in the water. It is getting time for the adults to move on.

I paddled down the pond without seeing any loons. I turned around and came back up the pond. Without seeing any loons.

The colors along the shore were nice and the mist added some nice atmosphere. I began to fear that I was to strike out again. Then the romp of four otters appeared.

They were busy feeding. The Eastons seem to have crayfish as a larger part of their diet than the other loon families I follow. I’ve wondered for years if there was a larger than normal population of crayfish or if the Eastons just preferred them to fish. The otters never had to dive long before resurfacing. And every meal I could identify was a crayfish. Sounds like a clue that crayfish may be easy pickings on the pond.

Almost all of my encounters with otters over the years were brief. The otters would pop out of the water, stretch their necks up, PFFFFTTTTT at me and disappear. This morning, they didn’t seem to care that I was out and about. They went about ottering with me trying to keep up. Here, two climb out on some rocks while waiting for the other two to catch up.

When the others caught up, the romp headed down the shore and went ashore. Otters don’t poop in the water. They climb out and use one of several ‘latrines’ the romp has established around the pond. These guys climbed out and went up in the brush – I suspect they needed the bathroom. Every once in a while, one would appear in this clear spot on the bank. I think he’s checking to see if I’m still hanging out.

After a few minutes, they headed back out for more breakfast. They travel quickly. And they stay very close together.

And they change direction often and for no apparent reason.

Oops, this guy took a wrong turn underwater and is looking to see where his buddies went.

When they surface, they seem to exchange information. Perhaps sharing their favorite fishing hole?

While I was watching the otters, Mom appeared with one of the chicks in hot pursuit.

The chick is capable of taking care of himself at this point. This one was still practicing his calls this morning (I didn’t hear him practice yodeling, so it may be she.)

But Mom was willing to come up with breakfast. The chick wasn’t going to pass that up. Crayfish yet again.

And yet another crayfish. Enjoy this while you can, kid.

As soon as the chick swallowed his meal, he went after Mom to convince her he wanted more.

The chicks aren’t at all gentle. I’m surprised the parents don’t correct them when they get particularly aggressive.

Mom took a few minutes to preen – with the chick poking and prodding her as she did. She finished with a nice stretch. That’s the chick under her left wing.

Mom went back to feeding. It was time for me to head in. There was no sign of Dad on the pond. He hasn’t been there the last few visits. I suspect he headed out a little early for some rest. And I never found the second chick. That chick seemed to be a bit ahead in development. Again I’d bet he’s taken off to explore the world.

I hope everyone is well above water level. The nor’easter can’t decide if it is going to do much in Vermont or not. The wind picks up and dies down and we’ve had a few sprinkles. So far, not much to talk about. Hopefully it stays that way for everyone.

great blue heron, herons, loons, otters

Easton Chicks Try to Fly, Herons Here & There

On September 20, 2026 - Egrets, Herons, Loons, Otters, Shorebirds, Wildlife Photography

The Easton chicks have decided to fly and I visited the coast to see what I could find.

The Vermont North By Hand Open Studio Tour is coming up. The tour will be on October 10 & 11 from 10 to 5 each day. My tiny office isn’t much to see, so Sue Martin – the stained glass maker – has offered to let me set up at her farm. The Martin Farm is on Route 5, right on the Bradford – Fairlee town line. The VTNBH map isn’t yet correct, but here’s a map to Sue’s: Martin Farm Bradford, VT. Please stop in to check out Sue’s stained glass and my set up.

The calendars for Oscar’s Memorial Dog Park will be going to the printer soon. We’ve been using Printing Center USA for our calendars. Give them a look.

Last weekend, I headed down to the coast. I caught up with a friend and our first stop was the egret roost in Seabrook.

The roost hosts mostly great egrets along with a large group of snowy egrets. When I visited, there were a couple glossy ibis and cormorants mixed in as well. I asked Grok to count the birds in a photo, it came up with 173 great egrets and 53 snowy egrets. And that was after a sizable number had already left. Birders posting on the NH Birds list often count over 300.

The roost isn’t a great way to photograph the birds; they arrive after the sun starts setting and get on their way before it rises. And they’re back far enough in the swamp to be hidden by the trees.

As the light brightened, there were lots of egrets flying.

After the flock had headed out for the day, we headed for Plum Island. Where we found lots of egrets. As the tide went out, the egrets, cormorants and lots of wading birds were feeding on the fish still in the shallow water.

After breakfast, they all came ashore to preen.

We walked down the beach to see what we might find. There was a large flock of gulls and a couple dozen semipalmated sandpipers.

We watched the sandpipers feed for a time before heading back up the Island to see who else might be around.

There were lots of egrets working the salt marsh – mostly too far away to be photographed. This guy didn’t get the memo to stay away.

A trio of Hudsonian whimbrels landed out in the tall grass – almost too far for photos.

Another great egret that didn’t get the memo to stay out of camera range.

We headed north to check out the Maine Coast. We got some nice walks in, but found nothing to photograph.

The next morning, I visited the egret roost again before wandering up the coast. In Rye, I found Hank Heron and a small flock of egrets and a larger flock of lesser yellowlegs foraging in a shallow tidal pool.

Hank, the great blue heron, was overseeing the action. All the birds were rapidly catching the small fish that made a poor career choice to stay in the pool when the tide went out.

Hank showing off his boardinghouse reach. The other birds in the pool were respectful of Hank, and didn’t get very close to his pointy end. They’d walk well out of his reach or behind him when they wanted to go by.

There was a pair of snowy egrets that couldn’t get along. They’d squabble when they got too close to one another. This one is still fluffed up after displaying while chasing his nemesis away. Hank was watching the fish.

It looks like Hank has gathered his flock together for a sermon. What would a heron sermon be about? Zen and the Art of Catching Fish?

If Hank had been talking about everybody getting along, the egrets didn’t get the message. This pool just wasn’t big enough for the both of them.

This egret is still all puffed up after the kerfuffle. I’m not sure I’d want to mess with him.

Hank and one of the egrets seemed to have cleaned out the larder at this end of the pool and are headed to the other end to see what’s down there for snacks.

I spent over an hour on my belly in the marsh watching this group. And getting soggy. After a change of clothes, I continued on north then west to head home.

Last Tuesday checked in on the Eastons. The chicks were about 11 weeks old – time for them to be trying to fly. I’d been watching for them to try on my last few visits. They didn’t cooperate.

Mom was on the pond. I didn’t find Dad, it is likely he headed to a nearby pond for some R&R. The chicks were hounding Mom to be fed. This chick is trying to remind her that she has chicks and they’re hungry.

Mom! Mom! I’m right here Mom! Mom! Mom! I’m hungry! Mom!

I’m hungry! Mom! Mom! The chicks are big enough to keep up with her now, she can’t just swim away to get a break. I’m convinced this is why the loon parents leave before the chicks – just to get some time for themselves.

Mom eventually flew several hundred yards down the pond to get away. She preened briefly before stretching.

The chicks appeared to consider actually foraging for themselves. But, the wind came up and they decided it was time to try to fly.

On the first attempt, neither chick got anywhere near airborne. But, chicks always look so proud of themselves after a good attempt. This one had a good stretch.

He took a break from trying to fly to practice his yodel. It was clearly a yodel, if a little squeaky. Biologists think the loon’s yodel gets deeper as the bird gets larger and older. That would be a good way to signal to a challenger that they’re big and tough and not to be messed with. This guy has a ways to go.

The other chick gave flying a try as well. Then came over to discuss it with his sibling.

The wind died down for a bit. The chicks foraged lazily and this one gave a good stretch.

Cruising by me while he waited for the wind to pick up again.

The wind is back up! He’s giving it another try! It was a great effort, but this was about as high as he got.

He was determined to get airborne. He swam back downwind, turned and made another try. He’s got his belly out of the water and was flying between footsteps, but couldn’t stay up.

It didn’t look like this was to be the morning. He settled back down and skidded to a stop. I’m sure by the time I get back to visit, both chicks will have mastered it and will be flying as they wish.

On my way to the boat launch, I startled the quartet of otters. This pair stopped to let me know they disapproved before swimming away.

Yesterday, I went looking for Hank and the green herons in Bradford.

There looked to be only a very light fog in the valley as I packed up the car. By the time I found Hank, it had gotten thick. Hank went about finding breakfast and ignoring me. The top of the trees behind Hank were lit and were above the fog. If Hank would just wait a few minutes, there might be a great photo along here. Hank isn’t into waiting for the light. He took off downstream.

Or maybe he was just looking for a more dramatic perch….

He was relaxing and taking in the early sun. He probably wanted to warm up – I know I did. After a time, he flew a bit back upstream to get serious about finding breakfast.

There’s a stretch of river bank that borders shallow water and is relatively brush free. Hank stared at the upstream end of that stretch, I beached the boat at the sound end and hoped he’d work his way to me. Looks like he’s spotted a meal!

He tried tasting the stick with it pointing out, pointing to the left and even pointing to the right. But, it just wasn’t very tasty. Back it went.

I’d hoped he’d work his way to me, I hadn’t expected him to walk right up to me. My 800mm lens proved to be too long. I backed up to try again.

This one was catch and release as well. Let’s face it, you can’t find sticks like Mom used to make in just any old river.

Another try…. what will he come up with this time?

This time, he came up with a tiny snack – some sort of water bug I think.

And one more…. The area where he was foraging has had a population of young pickerel (or relatives) hunting in there every time I’ve paddled through. I wonder if Hank was mistaking the sticks for them.

This time he put a little more effort into his strike – and came up with a small fish.

Something startled him and he jumped clear of the water.

Whatever it was, it didn’t scare him off. He promptly went back to foraging. I had to head home.

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great blue heron, great egret, loons, otters, snowy egret

More Herons, More Eastons

On September 3, 2026 - Herons, Loons, Turtles, Wildlife Photography

Edit – I originally identified one of the birds as a green heron. I’ve gotten a couple emails saying it is a juvenile black-crowned night heron. I’ve updated the captions. Thanks for the correction.

Two recent mornings found me on the Eastons’ pond and two evenings found me visiting the herons. The Easton chicks should be trying to fly by now, maybe even flying. I’ve yet to catch them in the act. The herons provided either feast or famine.

I’m getting ready for the Vermont North By Hand Open Studio Tour, October 10 & 11. Artists around the Upper Valley will be opening their studios and showing their work. Since I don’t have a studio, I’ll be at the Martin Farm. It doesn’t yet show on the online map, it is right on the Bradford-Fairlee town line on Route 5. Sue Martin will be showing her stained glass and Carole Kitchel Bellew will have her stoneware at the Farm as well.

Fall had arrived when I made it to the Eastons’ pond on the 29th. When I got to the pond, it was still above the fog. A brisk 46° when I put in had me digging out a sweatshirt. Mom was tending the chicks. Dad was off the pond somewhere to start the morning. The chicks were off on their own – they’re old enough to take care of themselves. The otters were feeding and romping along the shore. They disappeared before the sun came up.

One of the chicks cruised by to say hello.

He’s reaching back to get some preen oil from the uropygial gland near the base of his tail. He’ll spread the oil over all his feathers to keep them waterproof.

Finished preening, he gives a nice stretch.

And another stretch. I lost track of which chick was which, but I’m sure this is one of them.

That evening, I headed down to the river to see if I could catch the heron in action.

This painted turtle was out basking about 18″ above the water. Guess he liked the view.

And this pair of painted turtles watched me while I waited for the heron to show himself. Every so often, they’d bob their heads like they were laughing at some turtle joke. They reminded me of Statler and Waldorf – the two grumpy old men Muppets that heckled from the balcony. They had the last laugh, the heron stayed behind the brush all evening.

The next morning found me back on the Eastons’ pond. It was once again in the high 40s when I put in. The hill to the west of the pond has turned slightly rusty and there were a couple trees around the pond that have already turned. Once again, the otters were playing along the shore, but didn’t stick around for photos. Both loon parents were on the pond, but trying to leave the chicks to fend for themselves. They succeeded for a time.

One of the chicks came around a corner on the shore and spotted the otters playing on and around some rocks. The chick headed away at a good clip. Swim away! Swim away! Otters! Swim for your life!

The chicks were both foraging independently. They were covering a lot of distance underwater when they went down. One would appear in the neighborhood of my boat. Then dive a couple times staying in the neighborhood before diving and disappearing. This one took time to stretch as the first light hit the pond.

Here comes one of the chicks along the shore. You can see there’s some yellow and red in the leaves behind him.

He must have seen me watching, he took time to show off with a nice stretch. You can see his flight feathers nicely along the bottom of his wings. I was hoping to catch them trying to fly, but it wasn’t on their schedule for the morning.

The other chick preening and cleaning the feathers on his belly.

Followed by a good shake of his head, which sent water drops flying.

And he too stretched nicely. Again, you can see the flight feathers have grown in nicely along the bottom of his wing. Preening and stretching complete, it was time to find some breakfast.

The chicks were spared having to find their own food when Mom appeared. The chicks are old enough now that they really hound the parents. They’ll nip at a parent—around the face and neck if they can reach them, or at whichever feathers are closest. The parents will surface, quickly toss the food in the direction of the chick and dive again to avoid being pinched. This chick has spotted Mom with a meal and is kicking up a pretty good wake as he closes in on Mom.

After Mom provided several meals for each chick, she tried to preen. But the chicks weren’t convinced that breakfast was over and were following and pinching her.

Mom just handed off a meal to this chick and is trying to go about her business. The chick is close behind, just in case she forgot he exists.

I waited a time after the wind picked up. Neither chick showed an inclination to try flying so I headed in.

That evening I headed back to the river to see if the green heron would cooperate this time.

A few feet south of the heron’s favorite downed tree perch, I found the great egret had returned. I stopped to get some shots of him.

After a couple minutes I looked for the green heron and found this black-crowned night heron strutting his stuff along the shore.

He stopped to look and listen for a meal.

Something caught his attention and he started stalking it. He was working his way down the shore towards the egret.

The egret was settled on his perch. The egret was tracking the heron, the heron hadn’t spotted him yet.

Ahoy mate! What are you doing here? The heron came around some brush and found the egret.

The heron studied the situation for a moment before deciding to play through.

The black-crowned night heron took up position not far from his favorite tree to see what else the smorgasbord had to offer.

Hearing a splash, I turned around to find Hank himself foraging behind me. He was unsatisfied with the service and promptly moved on. A couple minutes later, the green heron agreed and flew off in the opposite direction. The egret moved to a perch with a branch right in front of him. There was a thick cloud just above the horizon. When the sun went behind that, I figured I was done for the evening and decided to head in.

There’s one channel out of the marsh back to the main river. As I came through the cattails, I found the black-crowned night heron foraging on a sandbar (Are there mudbars? That would be more accurate.) He was only a few feet from where I came out of the reeds. I figured there was no way not to flush him. He looked up briefly, decided I was boring and went back to foraging.

He caught a little fish – barely visible in the air in front of him. I have no idea why he spit it out. But that was one lucky fish.

Working along the shallows, he soon was able to catch a stick. The stick proved not to be to his liking and he gave it a good thrashing before tossing it.

A little further along, he nabbed another stick. This one also displeased him and it, too, was thrashed.

The little branches sticking up on this stick were also in for a thrashing. This guy was tough on them all. But, to be fair, the sticks had it coming.

Through with the sticks, it looked like it was to be my turn for a thrashing……

He walked towards me and hopped up on a log in the mud – too close for my lens to focus. Fortunately, I had a shorter lens with me.

He spent some time trying to grab dragonflies out of the air.

And some time debating if he could nab me……

Luckily for me, he decided he was in the mood for seafood.

The sun was dipping below the hills to the west; I’d fed the mosquitoes their fill; it was time to head home.

Have a happy Labor Day!

great blue heron, great egret, green heron, herons, painted turtle, turtles

More Easton Kerfuffles, Hank and His Neighbors

On August 27, 2026 - Herons, Loons, Raccoon, Turtles, Wildlife Photography

The Eastons have a very productive territory – the loons on the pond have been very successful at fledging chicks. Other loons in the area have taken note. And want to take the territory over. Mrs. E has been fighting off an intruder that has repeatedly come in to try to force her off the pond. My previous visit found a male intruder also interested in the territory. I made it up to check on them last Friday. And I’ve made several trips to the Waits River to see what Hank Heron, et al, have been up to.

The Vermont Handcrafters have an exhibit opening at Court Street Arts in Haverhill, NH on Friday, August 28. The reception is from 5 to 8 pm at Court Street Arts (Alumni Hall). We’re getting ready for our Open Studio Tour over Columbus Day Weekend, October 10 & 11, 2026. I’ll have a couple pieces at Court Street Arts and will be set up at the Martin Farm right on the Bradford – Fairlee line for the open tour. Sue Martin, who creates beautiful stained glass is kindly letting me have space near her studio. Stop by to check us out.

Friday morning was a beautiful, if chilly morning. It was 48° when I put the boat in. I kinda wished I’d thought to bring a sweatshirt. The Eastons were feeding the chicks when I arrived before sunup. After watching a bit, Mr. E alerted to something. He lowered himself in the water and headed out stalking something.

After a moment, I spotted a quartet of otters frolicking while they foraged. Otters are threats to the chicks and possibly the adults too. The Easton parents headed up the pond to encourage the otters to go away.

Just as the otters were convinced that they wouldn’t have any peace in the neighborhood, an intruder flew in.

Mr. Easton quickly took out after the intruder.

He passed close by my boat on his way to deliver a whooping.

After a brief round of wing rowing, the intruder departed. Mr. E took time for a victory stretch.

But the excitement wasn’t done. Within a couple minutes, the female intruder arrived. Mrs. E had to go after her. On a couple of my previous visits, Mrs. E seemed overmatched. The intruder was able to deliver several hits with her wing. But Mrs. E is still winning the war – she hasn’t been forced off the pond.

Another shot of Mrs. E going after the intruder.

Friday evening, I went down to the Waits to see if I could get the herons without all the fog. I paddled downstream. As soon as I passed under the railroad, there were great blue herons flying everywhere.

As he disappeared around some brush, another great blue heron came low upstream.

And after a moment, another heron crossed the river ahead of me.

When the skies cleared, I took some time to get shots of a handful of least sandpipers foraging on the bank.

There’s been a green heron foraging on the east side of the marsh for several evenings. I went to see if he might be around. He was on station, but refused to come out in the open. Herons can be like that.

There were several painted turtles taking advantage of the beautiful afternoon.

I went back Tuesday evening. The sky was clear of herons on my way downstream. After some looking, I found the green heron in the shadows under a tree. I settled in to wait for him to come out closer to the water – and hopefully into the light. He headed inland. After a few minutes, the heron and a wood duck hen I hadn’t seen both squawked and came hustling out of the brush. My guess was they’d surprised each other moving around.

There was some rustling in the brush and this raccoon came out. He spent several minutes foraging in the open.

And here he’s staring me down like I caught him rummaging through the trash….

I went back twice yesterday. I was out in the thick fog before sunup and returned late in the afternoon.

Hank was foraging in the shallows. The wood duck was unimpressed. A full-grown duck is probably too big for a heron to swallow. But if I were a duck, I wouldn’t trust a heron not to try. This duck just sat there.

There are working fields nearby. It sounded like someone dumped something from a dump truck. The gate clanging closed got everyone on the move.

Hank looked like he was heading upstream. He had only a couple hundred yards to go to one of his favored foraging spots. I had to paddle about half a mile to discover he had gone to breakfast elsewhere. After a little searching, I found one of the green herons foraging in the weeds.

The breakfast selection wasn’t great in the weeds, the heron moved out into shallow water.

A quick strike and he came up empty billed.

Followed by a good head shaking. After a time searching the shallows, he decided to try someplace else. I headed home.

The skies were again heron free as I headed downstream in the afternoon. The turtles had reclaimed their perches and were busy taking the sun.

The heron wasn’t to be found under his usual tree. A little further along the shore I got my first glimpse of him.

After watching a while, he walked down the shore, close enough for a headshot.

He tried for a couple meals and came up empty. Then he found a large tadpole – probably a green frog or bullfrog tadpole.

It was a sizable meal and took some maneuvering to get down.

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great blue heron, green heron, herons, loons, Raccoons, turtles

A Visit to the Eastons and Hank Finds a Friend

On August 9, 2026 - Beavers, Herons, Wildlife Photography

The weather let me get out three times last week. I had a visit with the Eastons and a change of pace took me to the Waits River where it looks like Hank has found a friend.

The Beaver Meadow Chapel at 1672 Beaver Meadow Road Norwich, VT will be hosting me to present my slideshow An Uncommon Look at the Common Loon Saturday August 22 at 7:00 p.m. Free and everyone welcome.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by my setup at the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen’s Fair. My next show is going to be local. I’ll be exhibiting in the Vermont North By Hand Open Studio Tour October 10-11, 2026. I’ll be set up at the Martin Farm on Route 5 right on the Bradford – Fairlee Town Line. Sue Martin is a very talented stained glass maker and has kindly offered me space to set up next to her. (I’d open my ‘studio,’ but my work at home is in a very cramped 6′ x 9′ office – mostly filled from floor to ceiling. There’s not much to see…) The map and details for the Open Studio Tour are here.

Last Tuesday, I made the trek up to check in on the Eastons. On my last several visits, Mrs. Easton had been facing a serious, ongoing challenge for the pond. On each of my visits, an intruding female arrived and a scuffle began.

When I arrived Tuesday, there was peace on the pond. Mom and Dad were foraging lazily. The chicks were sleeping in. Every so often, one of the parents would deliver a snack to the chicks, often having to wake them to make the delivery. The chicks would often take the snack, yawn then return to his nap.

Being a well-fed chick can be very tiring.

Sometimes, they’d take a moment to just look cute before going back to nap.

After getting a snack from Mom, this chick scored what looks to be a caddisfly emerging.

Dad took over babysitting and Mom headed up the pond on her own. I went looking for Hank. Before I could find him, an intruding loon flew in. He landed not too far from the chicks.

A closer look. This gives a good look at her bands – that’s how I tell the parents apart.

The intruder seemed more interested in breakfast than fighting. Dad went to face off with him repeatedly. The intruder would dive and cover a lot of water before resurfacing. Dad eventually put on a wing-rowing display and the intruder took the hint and departed.

Dad looks kind of smug as he returns to the chicks.

Peace returned to the pond. I poked around a bit more, without finding Hank. The female intruder didn’t show up while I was there.

On Wednesday, I headed down to the Waits River. There have been black-crowned night herons nesting there for several years and a least bittern has been a regular in the marsh. There was a thick fog when I put in and it stubbornly refused to lift. I explored around the marsh.

I flushed a beaver I hadn’t seen from the reeds. He circled around close to the boat a couple times before deciding to resume breakfast somewhere else.

I was about to give up and head in. As I started upstream, a great egret flew in.

The egret set to work finding some breakfast. Can I name him Egret Allen Poe? OK, I’ll work on it.

And stalking something along the river bank.

When I looked up from the camera, I discovered Hank had appeared just a few feet upstream. I assumed someone was going to chase someone else away. But for a time, they foraged near each other. Hank would follow the egret as they went downstream.

Hank eventually made a halfhearted lunge towards the egret. The egret danced out of bill’s reach and resumed foraging. Hank gave up the chase and also went back to foraging. They stayed close as they worked their way back upstream.

After a time, Hank flew a couple hundred yards upstream. The egret followed promptly and they went back to foraging near each other. They repeated this a couple more times.

I returned the next day and found them flying upstream together. They headed away from the River and I didn’t see them again that morning.

Both herons and egrets are solitary birds. The heron looks to be a juvenile, I have no idea how to spot a juvenile egret. I wonder if they’re used to having company in the nest and haven’t grown into the need for solitude.

Hank checking downstairs to see if breakfast is down there….

Hank managed to come up with what looked like sticks on a couple tries. They were promptly tossed.

After getting nothing edible, Hank strode upstream to find better opportunities.

Hank flew a bit upstream and hid in the reeds. The egret followed. But apparently didn’t like the set up as he flew further upstream after just a couple minutes. Hank followed along.

The egret found this territory more to his liking.

The egret making a catch. Harold “Doc” Edgerton, call your office.

The fog had lifted enough to start getting some contrast in the photos. I took advantage and got the egret posing.

The egret seemed to think his left profile was his good side…

A note on the type, I’ve tried to increase the font size on both the text and photo captions. Is this an improvement?

And, as always if you’ve come to this post from a link elsewhere, you can subscribe with the form below. I’m just going to use your info to let you know when I’ve added a new post. I won’t share or sell your info. And, if you like the blog, please share it with a friend or two. Thanks!

beaver, egretss, great blue heron, loon chicks, loons

We Have Loon Chicks, Heron Chicks Getting Big

On June 14, 2026 - Herons, Loons, Wildlife Photography

Another busy week visiting all three loon families and the heron rookery. The Westons’ chicks have hatched, the Eastons are sitting on their nest, the Middletons continue to look for a new spot. And the heron chicks are getting big. Very big.

The Berkshires Art Festival is coming up in Great Barrington, MA on July 3, 4 and 5. I’ll have note cards and prints large and small for sale. I’ll be in booth 212 in the Upper Lodge. Please come by and have a look. My 2027 Wildlife Calendar went to the printer. If all goes well, I’ll have them at the show.

The Westons laid their eggs sometime during a week I couldn’t visit. I’d expected the eggs to hatch last weekend. Monday morning I headed out early and found the pond in thick fog. I paddled up the pond and back down before running into Mr. Weston on his own. Mrs. Weston was still on the nest. And squirming regularly. (Dad is banded in this pair. When I can see a leg, I can tell who is who.)

I parked the boat and waited. After a bit, Mrs. Weston stood up to see what was going on downstairs. The chick has broken the end of the egg off and his? head is exposed. Mrs. W seemed satisfied with the chick’s progress and sat back down.

Every spring, I get questions about my camera gear. I’m using a Canon EOS R5 with an 800mm f5.6 lens. 800mm lets me sit well back from the loons – and most of the images in my posts are cropped.

About two and a half hours later, Mom stood up again to see what was happening. I could see the chick’s head, but he was behind the brush. Mom collected the empty eggshell and tossed it overboard. It fell just in front of the nest and she hooted at it a few times, but it refused to go away.

About four hours after the first picture, Mom took the chick into the water and found him several small meals. Mom climbed back up onto the nest and the chick followed. Mr. W was still on on the main part of the pond, enjoying his last morning of peace for the season.

Mom turned the remaining egg as the chick looked on.

Mom herded the chick back into the nest.

And went back to sitting. I hadn’t expected to be on the pond very long that morning. I left a couple hours after my butt went completely numb from the kayak seat and with a nice sunburn.

I went back Tuesday morning to see if I could meet the second chick. The fog was thicker than the day before.

It was foggy enough that I couldn’t see the chicks without getting too close. I tried to make the best of the time waiting for the fog to lift and amused my self shooting foggy morning shots.

By about 0600, the fog had lifted a bit and I went to check on the nest. Mom was sitting, Dad was feeding the chick by the nest.

The little guy caught on fast. Dad found several small fish and a crayfish for the chick before returning him to the nest.

The Westons have always pretty much ignored me until about time for the chicks to hatch. Then, everyone has to go. They’ll wail at people, beavers, any large bird flying over and even lots of small birds in the brush along the pond.

After tucking the chick back into the nest, Dad grabbed the eggshell Mom tossed overboard the day before and took out the trash.

After Dad fed the chick, he started back to the pond. As he passed, he stopped and displayed his wings at me. I took the hint and gave up my spot. I left the cove with the nest. Dad circled the cove a couple times wailing at the red-winged black birds, grackles and kingbirds.

As I was heading in, I passed an eastern kingbird sitting along the water. When the kingbird lowered his head, I could see the ‘crown’ – a patch of red feathers. They use the crown to attract mates and as a warning to predators.

As I left the pond, I had to encourage a snapping turtle to get out of the road. Female turtles are out of their ponds looking for nesting sites.

Wednesday morning I headed to visit the Middletons. On my last visit, I discovered they’d abandoned their first nest and were looking for a site to try again.

After a bit of searching, I found the Middletons testing out a possible nesting site. Mr. M was tossing vegetation up on the bank as Mrs. M looked on.

After a bit, he gave up and went to find a snack. Mrs. M tossed some vegetation herself before deciding a snack sounded good.

After finishing the snack, the pair checked another possible site. And found Hank the great blue heron at the breakfast buffet.

That site wasn’t what they wanted. They continued looking around the cove. Mrs. M tried to promote this stump as a good place to build. Mr. M wasn’t buying it. They kept looking, I stayed with Hank.

Hank stood pondside, waiting for breakfast to appear.

Oh! What’s this? Could this be breakfast over here? Hank crept into the water and dove at something behind the weeds.

He caught a sunfish when he dove. The caught it broadside to his mouth. Herons swallow fish head first. Hank was smart enough to walk back up on the beaver lodge away from the water before flipping the fish into position.

Hank went back to find more food. He dredged up what looks like a root of some kind. He waived this around a few times before tossing it back. He broke off a smaller piece and waived that around before tossing that back. Herons don’t eat plants, I’m not sure what he was doing.

I went to check to see what the Middletons were up to.

They’d gone back to the first possible nesting site I’d found them on. This time, they were both dredging up vegetation and tossing it.

They gave up after a time and headed out into the main part of the pond. Mr. M gave a nice stretch. I went back to check on Hank.

Hank had moved down the shore to a sunny spot. His camouflage seems to work pretty well. He’s in the brush about a third of the way in from the left side of the photo.

There he is. Watching herons fish can often be very boring. This was one of those mornings. I didn’t see Hank catch anything else before I had to go.

Yesterday morning I called on the Eastons. On my last visit there appeared to be a pair of loons defending a nesting spot with a banded loon challenging one of them for the territory. The Mr. Easton we’ve been following since 2019 wasn’t to be found. Mrs. Easton isn’t banded, she may be back.

Saturday morning found a pair of loons with a nest. The banded loon I’d seen the last time has taken over the territory. There was at least one challenger on the pond. After a brief skirmish, the challenger departed.

Hank, or his cousin, was looking over the pond.

I followed the banded loon for a time, trying to get a good look at both his legs. He was happy to wave his left leg. I only needed to see it once to see the tags. He must have waved the left leg 10 times before breaking down and showing me the bands on his right leg. I reported the band info, we may get to learn about the bird’s history.

There was a good breeze and the water was fairly choppy. The banded bird stretched while I was waiting to see the right leg.

The intruder returned and drew both of the home team to the far end of the pond. I snuck a look at the nest with my binoculars and they’ve got two eggs.

The intruder promptly left the pond.

One of the home team returned to sit on the nest. I headed home.

I expect to dodge wildlife on the road in the early hours. This past week, I’ve seen bears, foxes, a racoon and an opossum along with deer, more deer and even more deer. To change things up this morning, I met a horse trotting west as I was going east.

The chicks have grown remarkably since my last visit. These three chicks seem to be the biggest – and probably oldest – in the rookery. They live in what I’ve taken to calling Nest One. It is the furthest on the left and I need some way to keep them straight. They were up and acting up most of the morning. They’re very vocal and called most of the morning.

Nest One is getting small for them. Getting photos where we can see all three faces was a challenge all morning. Most of the time there’s usually at least one butt pointed in my direction.

Personal space is not really a thing in a heron nest.

The chicks in Nest Two – the second from the left – were tucked in for a nap.

In Nest Three – stay with me here, the third from the left – found these two were sitting up waiting for breakfast. There’s a third with his? head just barely visible.

Nest Four found two chicks preening and one doing whatever it is the guy on the right is doing.

One of the parents returns to Nest Two with breakfast. Both heron parents tend the chicks and we can’t tell them apart by looking.

When the chicks are young, the parents feed them by regurgitating food into their mouths. As the chicks get bigger, the parents bring food back and regurgitate it into the nest and let the chicks grab it. Looks like this chick isn’t ready to give up being fed.

And neither are the siblings. They’re all grabbing the parents bill. It looks like this is counter productive. The parent can’t bend over to regurgitate the food while the chicks are holding his bill.

After several false starts, the parent was able to bend over and is regurgitating what looks to be a perch into the nest. That’s a crazy crop, I was probably 130 feet from the nest.

The chick in the middle was able to grab the fish.

And the chick that nabbed the fish sure seemed to do an in-your-face-dance for the siblings.

A parent arrived back in Nest One. The chicks here also tried to grab the parent’s bill. This shot looks like the parent is putting food directly into the chick’s mouth. The parent had food for all three chicks. After dropping the rest of the food, the parent hopped to a branch about 10 feet from the nest.

The chicks started throwing a tantrum, trying to convince the parent they were starving. The parent ignored them. The chicks acted up for several minutes.

Mom! Mom! Mom! Look! Mom! Look at us! We’re starving! Mom! Mom! Mom!

The other parent has arrived back at Nest Two. Only to have the chicks all go for his bill.

The parent drops what looks like another perch into the nest where a chick immediately grabs it and swallows it.

After the parent left Nest Two, the chicks posed nicely. The chicks in Nest One were still putting on a show….

Last week, it looked like a wren had taken over the bluebird box where they raised a family earlier this year. In the last couple days, the bluebirds have reappeared. Ownership of the box appears undecided. I’m kinda rooting for the bluebirds. The wren’s song was cute the first couple days, but she over does it.

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great blue heron, heron rookery, herons, loon chicks, loons

Looking Back at the Herons

On November 1, 2024 - Herons, Wildlife Photography

Great blue herons are pretty common around the Upper Valley. All three of the loons’ ponds host great blues each year. Over the years, I’ve gotten a number of good shots of them. I’m pondering a ‘Heronscapes’ exhibit and have been digging through the archives to see what I’ve got. Let’s take a look.

The Hartland, VT, Public Library will host me to present my slideshow, An Uncommon Look at the Common Loon, this Wednesday, November 6 at 6 p.m. Free and everyone welcome. My print exhibit of loons is hanging in the Library through the end of November.

And my 2025 calendar is available:

The calendars are large – 9″x12″ with 13 of my favorite wildlife images. They’re $25 and $3 shipping per order. You can get one on my site: https://www.ianclark.com/.

On to the herons.

Most of the time, we spot great blue herons foraging along the shore of a river or pond. They can stand incredibly still before striking with lighting speed. They don’t seem fussy about prey. They’ll grab fish, crayfish, frogs, small birds and mammals. After we take the hay in our field, we get a pair of herons that show up to hunt the mice and voles. This heron has nabbed a crayfish.

Foraging in shallow water on the Weston’s Pond.

Flying past the reeds on the Easton’s Pond.

Herons will perch in trees overlooking the water. This probably gives protection from many of their predators.

Herons are smart enough to know where the sun will first hit their territory in the morning. On chilly mornings, they’re often perched to catch the earliest light.

Herons nest in rookeries, with nests high in trees. Most of the nests in this rookery were 25-30 feet above the ground. I’ve seen reports that they’ll build as high as 100 feet high.

A clutch is usually between three and six eggs. They grow into funny looking chicks. I suspect they were designed by Jim Henson.

Foraging in the early morning light on the Eastons’ Pond. I often joke that the herons on the Eastons’ Pond are skittish, but pose nicely twice a year. This year they outdid themselves, giving me extra opportunities.

Here’s one of the herons on the Eastons’ Pond ignoring the early morning light. But, this was July 2 and we weren’t chilly.

Another early morning shot on the Eastons’ Pond.

Wading in shallow water as the sun rises.

This morning wasn’t an easy one for our heron to find breakfast. He? moved around to several spots before I saw him catch a meal.

Many of my favorite shots are actually from before sun up. I love the muted light and fog.

I almost passed on this shot. I was much closer to the heron when I noticed him. I turned the kayak around and headed back up pond to get far enough back for some scenery. Fortunately, the bird waited while I moved and sat waiting for the water to quiet again.

One of our herons stretching as the sun begins to warm the pond.

Waiting for the sun on a chilly October morning.

And my favorite heron shot from this year.

birds, great blue heron, herons