Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)
Twice this afternoon, in the space of twenty minutes, a heron has flown down to land on the fence surrounding the pond. There are a couple of small fish in the pond, survivors, who knows how, of the big deportation of a few years ago. We suspect they proved to be tasty morsels for visiting herons, though some may have fallen prey to our local crows.
Herons eat a varied diet, including fish, rodents, amphibians, reptiles, and birds as large as wood pigeons. They have been observed using their yellow dagger-like beaks to stab large rats before drowning them and then swallowing them.
We have seen a couple of rats on the patio recently, so wonder if they are the current attraction for our visiting heron. Normally, rodents are dispatched by one or other of the cats, but it has been wet and chilly lately, so the cats have foresworn the great outdoors for the comfort of a cosy fire, human lap, or large dog.
Herons are such alert and wary birds that it is difficult to photograph them. The slightest movement causes them to take flight on their enormous wings to escape danger. Until I saw a dead heron stretched out on the grass at a friend’s house, I had not fully appreciated the sheer size of them – the largest are a metre tall, with a wingspan of almost two metres.
