Follow the Heron - A Visit to the Rookery

The back of the winter is broken

And light lingers long by the door

The seeds of the summer have spoken

In gowans* that bloom on the shore

By night and day we’ll sport and we’ll play

And delight as the dawn dances over the bay

Sleep blows the breath of the morning away

And we follow the heron home

Karine Polwart, Follow the Heron**

My friend invited me on a short adventure. "Come see the heron rookery," she said. Then she sent me a photo.

How lucky am I to have such friends!

Here is what we saw (it was overcast and we kept a distance):

Tree #1

At least 5 Great Blue Herons at the nests and about 7 Black Vultures below. We talked a great deal about  whether the Vultures are after eggs or baby birds. Apparently some years the vultures drive the herons from some of the trees.

After some movement from both species we backed off. Not only is it illegal to interfere with nesting, we don't want to do anything to impact the heron nesting. We did discuss what could be done to move the vultures to another location. One bird returns.

It circles and then approaches for a landing.

Sometime landings are graceful. Sometimes they are awkward.

Fold those wings and get comfortable.

I may not have the best camera, but it allows viewing from a distance.

The vultures flew back in...

And one vulture flew up to check out one of the nests.

This bird never moved.

Tree #2

Further down the creek was another nesting tree.

Tree #3

There was one more nesting tree even further down the creek.

We headed back down the road and checked on a couple of other things before heading home. What a lovely break from a long week. I went home for some research about Black Vulture diets *** and suggestions for safe distances so that we can keep from disturbing nesting. And we may see if we can do something to discourage the vultures without harm to the herons. 

Fingers crossed.

NOTES: 

* gowans - daisy or daisy-like flower.

** follow the heron home youtube

*** Black Vultures - Black vultures are carnivores and mainly scavengers, eating the carcasses of large animals, and sometimes small dead mammals. They also kill baby herons in nesting colonies and eat domestic ducks, newborn calves, small birds and mammals, eggs, opossums, skunks, ripe or rotten vegetables or fruit, and young turtles. https://animalia.bio/black-vulture

**** Distance from an active rookery - The Texas Colonial Waterbird Society, a large partnership of federal and state agencies, universities, and non-profit organizations, recommends that people fish, swim and play from 50 yards away from rookery islands to minimize unintentional and potentially illegal disturbance. While the nesting islands are often attractive spots for kayakers and other boaters, it’s important for humans, and their pets, to keep a safe and respectable distance. (Emphasis mine.)