Bird Lesson #2

A Great Blue Heron is as tall as a kindergartner.  It moves very slowly while fishing, but it can catch a frog or fish with lightning speed as it jabs it with its long, pointed bill.  It is mostly gray, while some are more blue than others.  When it flies its neck is shaped like an S. It is North America's largest heron.

Great Blue Herons nest together high in trees.  This nesting site is called a rookery.  These birds will be migrating to Central America as the colder weather approaches.  They hang out in ponds out in the country and there are usually many at the Lake Andes National Wildlife Refuge about 12 miles from here.

For more on Great Blue Herons, go to the "All About Birds" website by clicking here.

I took this photo of a rookery back in April in Charles Mix county.