great blue heron facts

Great Blue Heron Facts

Did you know that the Great Blue Heron can fish both during the night as well as the day. Read on to find out some more riveting facts about this magnificent bird...

One of the largest and highly widespread heron in North America, the tall, long-legged Great Blue Heron is easily spotted along the shores or edges of small inland ponds. Around summer and spring time, they tend to breed all over North and Central America, most of Canada, the Galápagos Islands, and the Caribbean. During winters, though some populations like to migrate towards Central and South America, they don't breed there. They are considered expert fishers. The technique they use to trap their aquatic prey is another interesting blue heron fact. They walk slowly or stand absolutely still for a long time, and wait for the fish to come in range. As soon as the prey is close enough to their long necks and blade-like bills, they deliver a deathly blow by thrusting their sharp bill, and swallow the entire prey with ease. This was just some of the interesting information available about this long-legged, bluish-grey bird. Read the following article to know more interesting Great Blue Heron facts and amazing information. Did You Know? Belonging to the Ardeidae family, the Herons' family includes egrets, night herons, and bitterns as well. Around the world, the Ardeidae family contains approximately 60 species. As we discussed earlier, the population of Herons is spread across North America, their range also includes Mexico, British Columbia, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. As they like to live near water bodies, you can also find them amidst mangroves, swamps, edges of lakes, marshes, and flooded meadows. Now that you have some information about this magnificent bird, read about some facts below. ● As Herons attempt to swallow their prey whole, they have been known to choke to death at times. Their long, S-shaped necks makes it difficult for them to swallow fish which are too long or large. ● One of the fascinating Heron facts is that even though they like to hunt alone and prefer tall trees, they generally make nests in low shrubs and in colonies. ● The primary diet of Herons consists of fish. However, they can quickly adapt to eating other animals like mice, frogs, lizards, snakes, dragonflies, grasshoppers, salamanders, crabs, shrimp, crayfish, small mammals, invertebrates, amphibians, and other aquatic insects. ● Blue herons are quieter as compared to other similar species. They make calling sounds such as "kraak", "fraunk", and "ar" when they are interrupted while flying, feel agitated or threatened close to their nests, and when they come in contact with other species respectively. ● The Herons play an important role in the ecosystem. These birds help control population of fish and insects from various habitats. Also, herons are a source of food for animals like red-tailed hawks, bears, raccoons, eagles, and turkey vultures. ● Did you know that each year on La Grande Île in Lac Saint-Pierre near Montreal, more than 1000 Herons come to nest. ● There are 7 known subspecies of the Herons, one of which is the Great White Heron, the white form of the Heron. They have similar bodies as the Heron, but are completely white in color. ● By the age of 22 months, blue herons are sexually mature. ● Herons breed once a year; in northern parts, during March and May, and in southern parts, during November and April. Female herons lay 2-7 pale blue eggs and both parents take turn sitting on the nest to keep the eggs warm. ● The Herons have lifespan from 15 years to 24 years when living in the wild. While they are young, that period is considered to be their most vulnerable. ● During the mating season, blue herons tend to stick to only one partner. So for the entirety of one mating season, they only have one mate. ● After just 60 days of being hatched, a young Heron can start flying. Also, the biggest chick is given the most amount of food by the parents. ● Another fact about this Heron is that while in flight, the wingspan of the Herons can be as wide as 6 feet. They also tend to hold their head close to their body, keeping the neck slightly bent. ● The oldest heron, that has been documented, has said to lived till the age of 23 years. This can be a rare case as majority of herons don't get to live that long. ● Herons like to add sticks to their nests each year so that they can re-use them. Typically, male Herons bring the sticks and the female Herons work on the nest. Before I end the article, I would like to leave you with a last interesting fact. In 19th century, Herons were hunted for their beautiful feathers. Women would decorate their hats with Heron feathers which later on led towards the species' depletion. Just for this reason, in early 20th century, a law was passed to ban hunting of these Great Blue Herons.

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