Great Blue Heron

A Great Blue Heron was spotted recently in the creek that runs between Providence Rec Center and the the Fairview Park complex.

We saw this huge crane-like bird flying over the parkland and we delighted to find him wading in the creek looking for crayfish, minnows, and tadpoles.

The Great Blue Heron stands 33-56 inches tall with a wingspan of up to 80 inches.  They hunt day and night. Despite their large size they only weigh 5-6 pounds due to their hollow bones.

This weekend we visited Great Falls National Park, a wonderful place to see all kinds of birds, from song birds, to raptors, to waterfowl. Across the Potomac River, up from the falls, on the island is a Great Blue Heron rookery.

Can you see the dozens of nests up in the trees?

You can also see the shadowy figures of the herons on the nests. The Great Blue Heron that we saw near Fairview Park could possibly be from this colony, but not likely. Their range is 2-4 miles from their breeding grounds.

So keep your eyes open and on the sky or in the creek. You may see one of these large magnificent birds!

(all photographs taken in Fairview Park and Great Falls National Park.)

Why a Raymondale bird blog? Dan and Beth Fedorko have been inventorying birds for Cornell University's Backyard Bird Count (www.feederwatch.org) which runs November through April each year. This inventory keeps track of migratory patterns, possible diseases, and decline and increase in bird populations. In response to the Raymondale Environmental Stewardship Task Force, we have started this blog which is separate from the general Raymondale news blog and more personal, to share our finds and photographs. If you see any birds in the neighborhood and surrounding parkland, please send us a photo! We'll help you identify it and might even post it on the blog!