up close and personal with great blue herons
THIS SIMPLY MAKES ME HAPPY. Talk about up close and personal, huh? Thanks as ever to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology for letting us see such intimate views of the avian world. You may recall that the great blues like the occasional feast in my backyard frogponds, but I have a cure for that (or at least a semi-deterrent):
Bamboo!
It works for me, but not for everyone (see comments on other tactics). Running outside to scream at the bird just as he lands works, too. :)
Visit the Lab of O’s site for more wonder anytime, and subscribe to their e-newsletter.
That is an amazing video of the blue heron. I see them in my area quite a bit, they are so interesting to watch.
I don’t think the bamboo poles would deter a Great Blue Heron. I had on unwelcome Great Blue visit my pond and decimate my goldfish population. We tried numerous deterrents including poles and grates (Old baby crib rail, repurposed) with ongoing fish loss. Finally we netted the pond. I came out one day to find the heron walking on the net over to the center of the pond, where he speared my largest ornamental goldfish, fondly remembered as Moby for his size and pale color. The heron speared Moby through the net, but was unable to pull the fish out. They are beautiful birds but not welcome in my yard.
Hi, Diane. My pool is so little, and sort of tucked below a steep slope, and I wonder if it just looks too weird with the poles across it from above, so they stay away. I had a run of trouble year before last, and this stopped it. So sorry to hear how persistent they are at your place!
I love to watch them walking gingerly around our 1/4 acre natural pond. They can eat all the sun fish they want!
Thanks for posting this link, Margaret. I’ve been a fan (read “addict”!) of watching these magnificently elegant birds since the cam went online about 2 wks ago. I highly recommend it to everyone.
ok Margaret, when I met you last year on Long Island I forgot to ask you want I always wonder every time I visit your site, is it ” Away to garden” or ” A way to garden”, or is the answer both, because the name delights me every time I ponder the answer!!
Cindy aka the pansylady
Haha, The Pansylady, it’s A Way to Garden (four words). You can read about that here.
I had this problem with our pond and sticks did NOT work. It deterred them for about 3 days until they figured it out. I did by a movement sensing water sprayer—I forget what it is called, but it did work AND was fun to see them fly away when they got sprayed…
after they ate several hundred dollars worth of koi. :(
Thanks, Joann, for the idea — I have seen those devices in catalogs I think. I think if I had fish in there (easier to see/spear than frogs) I’d be doomed. I have fish in another pool that’s hidden from the sky — the way the land curves and because of the big trees/shrubs beside it. Nobody ever seems to come hunting at that one thankfully in all these years.
Hi Margaret,
I am in the nest every morning with the blue herons, sketching and enjoying the
beauty and gentleness of these birds as they continue to build and are ever so gentle with the eggs… I use to have a blue heron decoy by my pond, worked great as they are territorial! Might want to give it a try… Now they are in the Japanese garden, no pond here in the city! :( just a water feature… I am still loving the blue heron decoys! They add much to japanese garden…Happy gardening… G
When i’ve stocked my pond with trout; a heron magically appears the following day.
How does he know??????