Empty Nests!!

Starting off this time with the Great Blue Heron chick, who was the original motivation for this entire blog series! This guy now appears to be fully grown. He comes back to his tree a couple times each day and still sleeps in or around the nest. It's really hard to believe that just 2 months ago he was the size of a football. I've been astounded by the rate of growth of all these birds. This one is exploring on his own most of the time now, and seems to be feeding himself, although mom is seldom very far away.

The Little Blue Heron chicks (will be white for some time still) are now all flying around and don't seem to return to their nests at all anymore. They have spread out pretty dramatically around the lake, but still take flying lessons, or just group flights with an adult leading the way. It seems that, so far, there have not been any losses.

I have taken particular interest in the Tri-Color Heron chicks that we talked about last time. Their nest was buried deep into a tree, and they didn't venture out into sight until quite mature. Since then, they've been fun to watch. They have come to be known by some as Mohawk Boy and Einstein (due to how the feathers on top of their heads simulate hair styles)!

At first, it seemed that Einstein was weaker and not as visible, but they now are quite similar and getting to be difficult to tell apart (both hairstyles now more closely resemble Boris Johnson). As you can see, their coloring is quite different from the Little Blues, and here is Mohawk Boy with the mother, who shows how they will look when mature.

Both chicks now are looking for their own food, but still go crazy when mom appears with snacks! They spend a lot of time on the shore (a sandy area, mostly) and seem to be playing. This next shot is one I got through the screen on my lanai, since it was raining at the time. Due to the metal screen, it looks a little distorted, but I'm going to go with the word "artistic".

The remaining nestlings are now mostly Anhingas, who are growing quite large but are still hanging around the nest. This nest is very close to the Great Blue Heron's nest location.

They are still totally dependent upon mom for feeding, and there is quite a commotion when she shows up several times each day:

But.... just when you think that things are winding down, it's clear that they are just changing. True to the circle of life, new nests are again being built. These are often in very close proximity to each other - here you can see an Anhinga on the left and a Little Blue Heron on the right, both sitting on new eggs in new nests.

A close-up of the Little Blue Heron on the right reveals 3 eggs, and the story continues!

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