Egrets, Egrets & More Egrets

Oddly enough, at the beginning of Spring Great Blue Herons seemed to occupy the majority of the nests at the Heron Rookery on Old Hickory Lake, along with a few Black Cormorants and Black Crowned Night Herons, and nary a Great White Egret. Fast forward to this week and it's all about the Great White Egrets. They were plentiful at the rookery.

The Egrets were busy flying in and out and in and out of the rookery. And at times creating havoc as they flew in. I'm guessing this guy didn't have clearance from the tower for this landing.

I love to photograph these gorgeous birds as they are so regal looking with their solid white physiques. Hope your week is going well. It's a balmy 81 with virtually no humidity tonight here in Tennessee and I am super happy about it. ENJOY!

A Cormorant Can!

At the Heron Rookery on Old Hickory Lake, you will find all sorts of species, as is evidence in my previous posts. The black Cormorant with their solid black bodies and bright colored skin can be found around the globe. Sleek black physiques, crooked bills and bright skin definitely set them apart from all of the other shore birds.

After a quick dive, the Cormorant finds a perch like this branch way up in the rookery next to their nest, to promptly dry their wings. My first encounter with Cormorants left me wondering what species they were. I Googled them and quickly got up to speed. Their trademark drying of the wings always gives them away, if not their long black bodies. I still remember the first time I saw them sunning on large rocks off the coast of Cape Cod. You can find them generally in groups.

After sifting through my archive of images, I discovered the only image of a nesting Cormorant was from my last outing. Take a look back at my last posts. Just scroll down this page and you will find the other birds nesting that day at the rookery on Old Hickory Lake in Hendersonville. The rookery is crazy busy right now. Notice the Great Blue Heron giving the Cormorant the stink eye. So funny. ENJOY!

Oh Baby! Oh Baby!

The story at the Heron Rookery on Old Hickory Lake, just a short distance from where I live, goes something like this. First comes the nest building. Then there's the tending to the nest. The flying in and out bringing twigs and building up the nest. The flying in and out to drop an occasional bite to eat. Or just the occasional flying in and out for no reason.

After much ado about the making or tidying up of the nest, then comes the waiting game. Sitting on the nest. Standing by the nest. Waiting patiently for something to happen at the nest.

And finally, after many many weeks, the eggs hatch, the parents fly in and out and in and out feeding and tending to the little ones. To our amazement they grow like weeds and before too long, they are almost ready to fledge. Oh, and did I mention it's getting just a tad crowded in the nest too.

At long last, Dad is patiently waiting on the lawn for the fledging. This is the life. It's not just the life for Great Blue Herons either. It's the life for Black Crowned Night Herons, black Cormorants and Great White Egrets. All roosting together as a colony in one huge tree right on the waters edge. Yes, the rookery was a busy spot a few weeks ago when I visited. I didn't see any fledgings on the lawn, but perhaps there have been some since. Perhaps I will pay a visit soon. The weekend is coming and bringing much rain with it. Wherever you are, I wish for you bright sunshine, blue skies and fluffy white clouds. ENJOY!

Tidying Up the Nest

Yesterday was overcast until late in the day when I finally headed out to the Heron Rookery on Old Hickory Lake about a half mile from home to check in on the Herons. It had been several weeks since my last visit. Quite a few Great Blue Herons were busy tidying up their nests. Other Herons were flying in and out and others were just sitting on their nest, some alone, and others in pairs.

I counted thirty Herons of those I could see. There had to be at least fifty nests although many were empty. I am fairly certain the number of nests has doubled since last year. This year I noticed Cormorants, as opposed to Black Crowned Night Herons, which leaves me wondering where the Black Crowned Night Herons are nesting this year. Perhaps they will show up later in Spring. After all it is still very early in Spring and there are still states where snow is falling in the United States. Here in Tennessee, however, Spring is in gearing up. I am certain we'll have a cold spell or two before Mother Nature heralds Winter out completely, but for now I'm enjoying mild temperatures.

It is an amazing experience to stand for minutes at a time in one spot and watch the Herons as they fly from one nest to the next, one tree to the next, and in and out of the rookery flying out across Old Hickory Lake. I witnessed a few fights among the Herons with the losers flying off in disgust. Herons make a weirdd croaking sound especially when they are quarreling.

I hope your week is off to a good start and you'll stop by again soon. I appreciate your comments. ENJOY!

Winging It

As I took a quick drive down the peninsula road in Hendersonville recently before calling it a day, I stopped at a lakeside park where I noticed three Cormorants were very busy drying their wings on several dead tree branches on Old Hickory Lake. Oddly enough, I rarely see Cormorants except right in this area of the lake.

 

One of the Cormorants looked to be making a fuss about something as I snapped away. I didn't know this bird had webbed feet which was a little surprising to me.

It has been a busy month for me and with the excessive heat, I haven't ventured outdoors that much. Up until the last week, there were severe thunderstorms almost daily. Everywhere you look there were piles of dead tree branches stacked up to be hauled away. Now it's just plain HOT. I hope you are staying cool wherever you are. I'll be back soon with some vineyard photos I captured last week. ENJOY!