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!

A Day at the Heron Rookery

It was a beautiful day with bright sunshine, blue skies and fluffly white clouds. There was, however, a crisp wind cutting through you as you stood outdoors. Nevertheless, it was a perfect day for viewing the Great Blue Herons perched on their nests at the Heron Rookery on Old Hickory Lake. I ate lunch in the car and finally got out to snap a few images of the Herons flying around the Rookery. Then it was back to work.

There must have been twenty Great Blue Herons hanging out in their roosts while others flew in and out. One can only get so close and then you must stop so as not to disturb them.

I stood away from the Rookery capturing images as the birds flew in and out of their nests. There was no evidence really of nest building. I suppose it's still a tad early for that. I'm almost certain there are a lot more nests than what I recall seeing at this time last year.

Several Great Blue Herons flew down the lake and back as I captured images.

I recall capturing images of some of the first hatchlings out of the nest in late Spring last year. I wonder if some of the Herons I saw today were those same birds as young adults. Surely.

More visits are planned in the weeks ahead as Spring approaches. In all honesty, Tennessee hasn't had Winter here at all this year. I can only assume Winter is still to come. We always get a snowfall or two and perhaps even an ice storm. I hope you enjoyed my visit to the Rookery today. ENJOY!

Heron Hotel

After several failed attempts, due to weather, I was finally able to hold the Bird Photography Workshop today. The weather could not have been more perfect. The temperature was in the low 80's and there was a nice breeze that seemed to pick up as the day went on. It goes without saying photo after photo after photo was taken in and around Old Hickory Lake. We photographed Great Blue Herons, Great White Egrets, Black Crowned Night Herons, Canadian Geese, Goslings, Mallards, Osprey, and well, you get the picture.

At our last stop at Lock 4 Park in Gallatin, just north of Hendersonville on Old Hickory Lake, I captured this image of the Heron Rookery. This rookery totally escaped my mind until Martha, a charming lady in the workshop, pointed it out to me. At the Heron Rookery in Hendersonville, watching the ladies in the workshop snapping photos was a lot of fun. They had a great time capturing images of an immature Great Blue Heron standing her the shoreline while its Mom and Dad were on guard not too far away. Great company and a great time was had by all. I wanted to share this particular image as every time I see it it reminds me of a hotel what with the various levels of heron nests, hence, the name the Heron Hotel. Hope you are having a great weekend and the weather is cooperative wherever you are. ENJOY!

Spring Mating

Standing a good distance away from the Heron Rookery yesterday, I couldn't quite make out a bird sitting on a nest high up in the tree. My binoculars were on the fritz which didn't help either. I did see several Great Blue Herons in various nests. And to my surprise, I saw one pair of Great White Egrets. I had only seen one or two Egrets so far this year and very intermittently. Now I know why. They have been busy breeding and now obviously were in the middle of a remodeling project.

When I finally dropped these images into my software, I discovered the illusive bird or birds, in this case, were a pair of Black Crowned Night Herons sitting on the nest. I wasn't sure where this species normally built their nests. I also wasn't sure if they nested near Great Blue Herons or Great White Egrets. Mystery solved. I believe this pair of smaller Herons set up shop in the past week as there was no evidence of them on my last visit. There also weren't any Egrets present. Busy rookery to say the least. Mating, breeding, nest building. Amazing.

It was simply a gorgeous day today, albeit the temps were in the high 70's, Thankfully, the humidity hasn't found its way to Tennessee as yet. A nice breeze was blowing. The sky was blue with the occasional white fluffy cloud. Great weather and beautiful birds busy with the task at hand. I can only hope when a few of these fledglings are ready to leave the nest, I can capture a few images. In the meantime, I hope you have a wonderful weekend. We have two full days of sunshine and warm temperatures ahead. Finally, a weekend with absolutely no rain. Miracles never cease. ENJOY!

Nests, Heron Rookery

On the day I captured these images weeks ago, this Heron Rookery was busy with male Herons flying in carrying twigs and flying out to forage for more nest building materials. I experienced this up close and personal and felt privileged to be a witness to it all. There was only one Heron sitting in one of the nests. Her nest may have been complete and she was incubating her eggs or perhaps she was just resting waiting for the male to return with more twigs. Below is a bit of detail regarding Heron Nest Building you might like to read.

NEST PLACEMENT. Great Blue Herons nest mainly in trees, on the ground, on bushes and even in duck blinds. Males arrive at the colony and settle on nest sites to begin courting passing females. NEST BUILDING. Male Great Blue Herons collect the nest material gathering sticks from the ground and presenting them to the female. The female weaves a platform and a saucer-shaped nest cup, lining it with pine needles, moss, reeds, dry grass, or small twigs. Nest building takes 3 days to 2 weeks. Finished, the nest can range from 20 inches to more elaborate structures reaching 4 feet across.

Old Hickory Lake is the perfect place for bird rookeries with lots of coves and inlets situated throughout it and low lying areas with dead tree branches sticking up out of the water making for the perfect perch to forage for fish.

The weather across the Midwest and South today looks to be wet and stormy and possibly some hail in certain areas. I have noticed since moving north of my original Hermitage location that Hendersonville gets less severe storms. I'm wondering if it has to do with the Cumberland River which I am now north of instead of south of. Tomorrow is looking to be a better day for some sunshine and warm temps. ENJOY!

UPDATE: My sister, Linda, called yesterday. I was speechless, as I heard her voice. In my last post I mentioned she suffered a trauma. She fell down a flight of steps, 15 deep, while on vacation in Florida. She sounded like her old usual self yesterday, but I know better. She has a long, long grueling recovery ahead of her as she mentioned to me. She has several fractures in her neck and two in her back, not to mention a bad concussion and possibly a hand injury. I can only hope and pray for her recovery. So again I ask will you keep her in your prayers as I am. Get well Linda!