It's hard to say when it first happened! It's a short flight to the ground from the mangrove that holds the nest. Waldo was the most curious at first, around the time of the last blog post. Probably later that day was his first flight. I saw him on the ground, then back in the nest later that evening. Waldon't didn't take the plunge until yesterday. Here they are at the edge of the lake; Waldon't is on the left. He never seems to stand up as straight as Waldo! Yesterday we had gale force winds, and it was a tough day for rookie fliers. Waldon't took it slowly, but Waldo flew up high and got caught in an updraft... flying faster than I've ever seen a Great Blue Heron travel. He was out of sight very quickly, but was back in the nest an hour later, so I guess he was fine when the winds died down.
The photo on the right is from a few days ago, showing Waldo exploring the north end of the lake. Both of them seem to be trying to self-feed, but mom still makes a daily appearance for meal-time. They both look about fully grown now; that likely keeps her quite busy!
The first LBH (Little Blue Heron) hatchlings have popped out. These have been the most visible eggs and nest as well. Take a look below and say hello to Groucho, Chico and Harpo! All 3 of these eggs hatched.
They are growing quickly and are getting fed several times daily.
Groucho appears to be the oldest and also the largest at this stage.
A new development is that several larger nestlings have just become visible from much deeper in the mangroves. They seem to be more mature and are getting adventurous, or we wouldn't actually be getting a look at them yet. Here's an example from the southern-most mangrove, and if you look in the upper left you'll see the head of what appears to be either an adult Great White Egret or Snowy Egret.
The baby alligators seem to have dispersed somewhat; I've only recently seen a couple and they've been alone. But here is mom, taking a morning stroll.... a pretty big girl!
There will be a lot of first flights coming up to look forward to! As well as trying to track the progress of the Mallard duckling family and their ability to avoid becoming snacks.
LBH are adorable!