Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Big Catch!

Camera in hand, eyes focused upward towards the blossoming tree canopy, I stroll quietly in search of colorful warblers and other migrating birds. I wander along a newly laid mulch trail that borders North Pond, a body of water teeming with a variety of fish, flora and fauna. My concentration is interrupted by the sound of flapping wings followed by a hushed thunk. I trace the disturbance to a sizable fallen tree that arcs out over the resplendent pond. There atop the thick, mossy, horizontal trunk stands a beautifully hued Green Heron with quite a mouthful. Upon closer inspection, I see the Green Heron is quite the skilled fisherman. A large, glistening, unfortunate Bluegill is the catch of the day.


I have observed several Green Herons before and their usual appearance is one of a multicolored football-shaped bird, perched on a limb, with a skulking stance, ready to strike. Much like the heron in the photograph above.


On this day, the source of the "hushed thunk" was this sashimi connoisseur.


What to do next with this rather large catch ...


Perhaps a few steps will send this fish to the depths.


A quick twist will surely assist.


Down the gullet with this mullet!


A long stretch of the neck will benefit a speck.


A satisfying lick of the beak, end to an admirable technique.


Finishing up with a long slurp ... or was that a burp?


Posted by Julie A. Gidwitz


16 comments:

  1. Great action images Julie! The heron had an awesome catch and so did you!

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  2. Lovely series! I love it when they seem to have a catch larger than they should be able to swallow, and yet they manage to do it anyway.

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  3. Fantastic photographs, unusual situation. I am greeting

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  4. Incredible series! Great catch for both of you. As always WONDERFUL photos!

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  5. What a beautiful bird! The physical dynamics of the Green Heron neck never cease to amaze, nor does your photography Julie. Nice work.

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  6. What a beautiful bird,and what beautiful pictures!

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  7. Fantastic post and great images. Love it! Having caught several of those types of fish, those fins are not soft, and kinda poky even. That seems like it would have been very hard to swallow, not to mention that it appears larger than the throat. Think of what a human at the Coney Island hotdog eating contest could due with a throat like that!

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  8. Outstanding series of Green Heron photos! Love your first paragraph description setting the scene-it was as though I was there too!

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  9. Excellent action series Julie! That is one big fish! Glad the Green Heron was able to manage it; that should fill him up for quite a while!

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  10. Absolutely outstanding post Julie, with your usual wonderous photographs. Am in awe...

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  11. Wonderful!
    What a great and unusual scene!
    The bird is magnificent... and funny to watch swallowing its fish, and your photography fantastic! The light seems just perfect! Wish I'd been there!! :)
    Keep well!

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  12. WOWZA! That's a great sequence of images. Fine action. Fine photos. I'm in awe.

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  13. Oh my, what a fantastic series and so excellently captured!!!!!!!!!!!! Wow!

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  14. Julie, awesome Green Heron photos. What a fun sight to see!

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  15. Funny! You sounded so serious at first but then that humor leaked out! I guess you can't help it with such a comical bird! Great post!

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