Visiting the Herons in Beacon Hill Park
There is a migratory colony of Great Blue Herons (Ardea Herodias) living in the park in Victoria, BC.
While there are numerous herons living here year round, the colony moves into the park in late January or early February and disbands in July or August. I'm not sure where they go after this, quite possibly they just disburse to live along the ocean shoreline until mating season the following year.
The herons mate for one season only, and after pairing up the nest building begins. Some years the colony will have as many as a hundred nests. There is a persistent local story which says that the bald eagles once wiped out the heron colony but I find it hard to believe. There is a single bald eagle nest in the park, and I can't imagine two adult eagles destroying so many nests.
The females build the nest while the males are responsible for finding and delivering the nesting material. There are so many male herons flying through the trees with little branches in their mouths right now, it seems as though they have formed specific fly-ways between the trees.
I wonder if that last guy is a bit of an underperformer... will his mate be impressed with that single branch?
These shots are not meant for a contest and to save time I'm not posting the EXIF data. I'd be happy to provide full details on any of these shots if someone is interested, but in general, I can say that they were all taken with my Nikon D750 and Tamron 150-600 lens.
I feel so lucky to live near the park. It isn't a wildlife sanctuary, but the variety of birds there is quite amazing. I'll finish off this post with a selection of bald eagle photos. The eagles are currently nesting in a tall tree near the heron colony, and it won't be long before their chicks - usually a pair - will be needing food. Fortunately for them, the thriving heron colony is right next door!
Wow ... Keith. Those are some amazing shots. My compliments. You can take a photo ... that is for sure. What was your vantage point. You must have been high up. We have some heron in Stanley Park. Which park was that?
Thank you so much! I'm on the ground with a long lens... 600mm. Most of these birds are at treetop level - douglas fir and giant sequoia, so they're way up there. Beacon Hill Park in downtown Victoria is our version of Stanley Park... smaller, like the town, but still pretty nice! :)
It looks like you are right next to them. Wicked camera. I have been to Beacon Hill Park. Yes, it is lovely place. I remember the peacocks .
They remember you. This one says hi!
He's a beauty:)I should take my son there when the weather is a little warmer. He would love the day trip:)
Thanks so much my mystery re-steeming friend! @pixresteemer :)
Wow absolutely gorgeous photos @keithboone!
Haha that one bird with the single branch cracked me up. It's like when people are moving and everyone's carrying heavy boxes but one guy is "helping" by carrying like 1 toothbrush or something lol
-@steveeats
I know right? Made me laugh as well :) Maybe his mate, who is in charge of the actual construction work, has given him very specific instructions? I need a branch this long with a 20-degree bend? Thanks very much!
Great post!
Thanks for tasting the eden!
Herons and eagles are among the most majestic of birds and these are some really impressive photos! Living so close to them and watching them nest in their natural setting sounds amazing! Also stopping by to say that you have been featured and curated for MSP Community Curation: Top Five 'Positive PAL Posts' - Week #15
Thank you so much, it's a great honour! Truly appreciated!