Great Blue Herons courting, February 6, 2022
I returned to the Great Blue Heron (GBH) nest a few weeks after my first sighting to check on the two chicks. I did not see chicks. Since the nestling period is 49 - 81 days, I imagined that those two chicks did not make it.
Instead, two adult GBHs were courting.
They entwined their necks and sometimes preened each other. I noticed that one had grey, sort of muddy markings on the crown much like the female Yellow-Crowned Night Heron has dark mustard markings on her crown when nesting.
They wove nest twigs like graduate-student basket weavers.
Even when he flew down to get a drink, he kept his eye on her.
A White Pelican flies past the female GBH standing in the nest.
So far, their courtship and nesting behaviors seem similar to the Yellow Crowned Night Herons.
Note: Heron nest located a short distance from Wildewood Springs.
