4/26/2009

Great Blue Heron

A lot of birds are special to me, but nothing compares to my passionate and lifelong love for Great Blue Herons. The Great Blue Heron means more to me than just a favorite bird; I feel an almost mystical connection with each and every member of the species. The Great Blue Heron is MY special bird, and I even get jealous when others claim the Great Blue as their favorite.



Imagine my surprise when I pulled up near the one of the reservoirs and saw a Great Blue Heron land right in front of my car yesterday! He had a huge, wriggling fish in his mouth, which he managed to swallow before I could find my camera. He walked right past the front of my car as I frantically shot picture after picture through the windshield.



I was awestruck and elated to be so close to him. He didn't know there was a human nearby, and he was unafraid as and unconcerned as he walked slowly and regally by the car. He was magnificent. I caught one last picture through the window of the passenger door before he disappeared behind one of the famous DONT EAT THE FISH signs.



The tragic irony of the last shot didn't hit me until I was reviewing the pictures. I had just watched him toss down a poison fish. Every time he eats, he eats poison. The new signs are written in four or five different languages - but not in Great Blue Heronese. Herons and hawks, eagles and seagulls; they are all equally affected. Every living thing that shares our world is affected.

So sad. We can fix all this if we make it a priority.

Or we could just get more signs.

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the post Susan, We also enjoy the magnificent sight of a heron, either in the water or in the air. When we see one, we always stop to watch and then go by as quietly as possible so as not to disturb it.

    Regarding the mercury in the fish the heron was eating, that is always my thought as well. We can hope that the Mass DEP and the federal EPA are right when they say the mercury is stable in the sediment and not in the water. They did a study on this a couple of years ago, but of course never told us what they found. But this is their stated reason for not trying to clean the river -- dredging would disturb the sediment, mix the mercury in the water, and make everything worse.

    We can hope they are right and the heron is not being poisoned by human stupidity and greed,

    Peter

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