Great blue heron rookery

For birders, spring is the quintessential time for photographing the objects of their passion.  Breeding plumage is in its full regalia, new arrivals from the south stream in and across migratory pathways, and nest building has begun.  Soon, eggs, and later chicks, will be produced and the busy parents will tend eagerly to their needs.  With the snow gone and the ice in full withdrawal on lakes, spring's arrival is imminent.

I have recently visited the Lower Mainland in BC and returned to my old stomping grounds.  Jerry Selina Park in Maple Ridge boasts a wide variety of birds including kingfishers, hawks, ducks, herons, and perching birds.  I was pleased to find a number of great blue herons busily constructing nests, some being fully completed.  The photograph above shows one such accomplishment and the inset reveals the rookery where it was found.

A rookery is loosely defined as a breeding ground for gregarious birds.  Herons breed in colonies, ranging from small groupings of half a dozen nests to many hundreds of them.  Males arrive first and the females later join them.  Once a breeding pair is established, the male will find suitable nest-building appurtenances beginning with large sticks and later smaller ones and soft materials to line the developing nest with.  He passes the material off to the female who then constructs the aerie according to her taste and needs.  I witnesses some of this behaviour as I photographed the scene from various points of view.

As with all nesting birds, we should not interfere with their efforts.  Bird populations are in decline all over the world and our efforts to view and photograph them often have the disastrous effect of driving the adults away, sometimes leaving the brood at the mercy of predators and the elements.  Enjoy and marvel at this time, but respect the bird's need to feel safe.  

Thanks for reading.   www.ericspix.com