Birds with Fish: Great Blue Heron

Welcome Barbados! Barbados is now the 128th country to visit this blog. How nice!


Now, continuing my series on Birds with Fish, we come to the Great Blue Heron. While not the best photo (the weed bed is too distracting), here is a Great Blue Heron with an enormous fish. How he got that down is beyond me -- but he did:

Great Blue Heron

Pena Blanca Lake - Part V

As you might imagine, I've photographed Great Blue Herons all over the US and Canada. In fact, in the Northwest, they are very common and not hard to find dozens -- if not hundreds at times. (Yes!)

But they make for wonderful photographs. And on our trip to Pena Blanca Lake we found one begging for a photo:

Great Blue Heron

Birding Green Valley

Yesterday, I headed south looking specifically for the Rufous Capped Warbler at Pena Blanca Lake, the Sinaloa Wren on the Juan Bautista de Anza Trail, and the Pacific Loon in Green Valley.

As can often be the case, no luck on those, although I did get the Pacific Loon at the Amado STP. Unfortunately, you can only view from the west so the morning light is terrible. Add the problem of not being able to get close because of the fence and the photos didn't turn out very well. I'll include one to let you see what I mean.

However, as is often the case, I did come back with some other photos. While there wasn't the Pacific Loon on the Golf Course pond in Green Valley there were 10-15 Canvasbacks and one beautiful male Wood Duck. I was there first thing in the morning (36 degrees) and with the mist coming off the lake got some wonderful shots.

Canvasbacks

Great Egret

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron

Wood Duck

Wood Duck

Lark Sparrow in a Mesquite Tree by the pond

Pacific Loon at Amado STP

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron photo taken at Kennedy Lake Park in West Tucson:

Great Blue Heron

Birding Christopher Columbus Park, Tucson

Christopher Columbus Lake  is on the West Side of Tucson and a recreational area for fishing, picnicking, kite flying, and remote controlled flying machines. It gets quite a bit of use, so is hardly "wilderness." 

Yet it provides a haven for birds -- and birders. And, since it gets a lot of people, birds are a little more "friendly" and can be approached if done slowly and quietly.

There are two essential areas: 1) the lake, and 2) a riparian area created by a small creek coming from the north side of the lake. 

The lake is the most reliable place in Tucson for finding and photographing Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets. There are often Black Crowned Night Herons as well.

The riparian area attracts warblers, vireos, with the occasional rarity like the Northern Waterthrush. It is often quite birdy and certainly well worth exploring if going to the lake.

Here are some photos from yesterday's trip to CCL.

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron

Roadrunner

Wilson's Warbler