Tag Archives: Black-crowned Night-Heron

Black-crowned Night-heron Stick Shopping

This Black-crowned Night-heron landed in a tree to locate some nesting material.

Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks
Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks

Who knew? They are all attached.

Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks
Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks

He finally snapped off this little piece.

Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks
Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks

But dropped it when something larger caught his eye.

Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks
Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks

This was a marginal improvement; he turned and flew away from me to the small island rookery.

Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks
Black-crowned Night-heron Hunting For Sticks

Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, Charleston, SC
April 15, 2023

O! Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron With Fish

I’ve rarely seen Night-herons of any kind flying with their meal.

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron

I didn’t see this Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron capture the fish, or if one of the Ring-billed Gulls in the area might have tried to take it.

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron

He headed toward the Spoony Tree…

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron

and dropped out of my sight on the back of the tree to eat in peace.

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron

Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, SC
December 11, 2021

Black-crowned Night-heron Tricky Landing

I caught this Black-crowned Night-heron dropping feet first into a clump of grass on a pond hummock.

Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Grass Clump
Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Grass Clump

It looked like a tricky maneuver and I doubted he would stick the landing.

Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Grass Clump
Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Grass Clump

With the bird weighing between 1 1/2 and 2 pounds  (675-900 g), at the least I expected the grass to bend to the ground.

Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Grass Clump
Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Grass Clump

But the grass held up and there he sat.

Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Grass Clump
Black-crowned Night-heron Landed In Grass Clump, Gallinule paddles away

Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, SC
November 27, 2021

Audience Unmoved

They’ve seen it before…so have I but I still like to photograph it.

3

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing

2

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing

1

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing

Touchdown!

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron Landing

Two adults looking on, ho-hum.

Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron with Audience
Juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron with Audience

Donnelley Wildlife Management Area
November 27, 2021

Cormorant Supervising

Double-crested Cormorants were calmly sunning on the Spoonie Tree when a Great Egret dropped in.

Great Egret Landing In Tree with Cormorants
Great Egret Landing In Tree with Cormorants

Then a Black-crowned Night-heron joined the gathering.

Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Tree
Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Tree

It was close to a crash landing, but the Night-heron made it, perhaps to the surprise of the Cormorant.

Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Tree
Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Tree

Then the Night-heron lost points for not sticking the landing. Not that anyone is keeping score.

Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Tree
Black-crowned Night-heron Landing In Tree

Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, SC
November 27, 2021