I came upon this Little Blue Heron inspecting the fluted trunk of a Cypress Tree.
Ah, a small frog snack.
In typical heron fashion the bird carried his prey around, squeezing tight.
Then, one gulp and it was gone.
Little Blue Heron, Frog Snack
Tag Archives: Feeding
Startled Wood Stork
I didn’t see this Wood Stork until he took off; he had been tucked up to the edge of the pond right in front of me. He was so close I didn’t get his full wingspan.
He didn’t go far, touching down at the edge of a channel.
He immediately started feeding.
The spot didn’t seem to satisfy him.
Pretty soon he took off for further down the pond.
Little Blue Heron Fishing
Back and forth, this Little Blue Heron was working the perimeter of a small pond.
We’ve had a tremendous amount of rain the last ten days and water is pushing up and even overflowing many pond edges, giving these birds the shallow water they prefer for hunting.
Add that it was a bit warmer and thousands of minnows were zooming around in the water and the Little Blue had a great hunting ground. Even with all that bounty he was slow and methodical, sticking to his process.
Success!
Great Egret Hunting in Swamp
This Great Egret was on his own as he hunted in a swamp were recent rains have left the water levels high around the edges.
Slow and methodical he went around a large tree, starting to show some fancy tail feathers of the approaching breeding season.
A big swallow…
…maybe it wasn’t what he was expecting… you don’t often see an Egret spit out food.
All good, he continued around the tree.
Magnolia Plantation and Gardens
February 8, 2021
Yellow-rumped Warbler On The Hunt
A very busy Yellow-rumped Warbler was zipping back and forth over the edge of a small pond.
He found small twigs to perch on between forays.
And then totally surprised me by landing in the water, which is much deeper than just to his ankles.
The carpet of vegetation, or perhaps a stick under the surface, was enough to hold up his 0.4-0.5 ounce (12-13 g) body while he poked in the water.
He got his treasure and skedaddled showing off his name-sake rump.
Great Blue Heron Getting a Snack
On the hunt, a Great Blue Heron posed, watching the duck weed covered water intently.
A quick stab of the water.
Turns out not to be a snack to share.
He had no trouble swallowing this little catch.
Carolina Chickadee on Sweet Gum Ball, 2
Feeding on Sweet Gum seeds is a lot of work!
A lot of probing goes on and you can see some debris falling at the bottom of this next image.
The Chickadee’s foot grasps the ball between the spikes.
Check out the reward!
Carolina Chickadee on Sweet Gum Ball
From my research the seed balls of the Sweet Gum (or Sweetgum, depending on where you read) tree should be empty of seeds by mid fall.
Clearly this tree didn’t follow the program and several Carolina Chickadees were feeding in its upper branches on this mid-January day.
The dried pod stems are still quite sturdy, although this little bird doesn’t weigh much at 0.3-0.4 ounces (8-12 g) per All About Birds.
If you’ve ever touched one of these balls you’ll likely remember; those spikes are quite sharp.
Fellow blogger Mike Powell has captured similar scenes in Virginia where there is overlap in both the tree and the bird, including his post Acrobatic Chickadee
Carolina Wren Getting Lunch
A perky Carolina Wren entertained me while he hunted for bugs on a vine covered tree trunk.
The vine and some Spanish Moss are good hiding places for bugs.
An occasional stop for a song is the wren’s way.
I think I was spotted.
Back to business the wren moved on up the trunk.
Eagle: Fish for Dinner
In a new flight pattern this fall and winter, I’ve seen Bald Eagles flying over the pond with the Great Blue Heron rookery. A couple of weeks ago I saw one go by and about four minutes later one came back with a fish in his claws.
I can’t say for certain its the same bird but given their territorial nature it is likely, making that a pretty efficient dinner run.
