Great Blue Heron

[newnan man]

Looking for lunch!

 

[tamrock]

They've all left here in my area. I think around the end of April they'll be back and again occupying the rookery tree along the creek. It's fun to watch them hunt for minnows. It be like us trying to catch minnows with chopsticks.

 

[Megalodon]

They can catch larger fish too. I have seen fish with healed injuries/scars from glancing blows from GBHs.

Our state had an image of a great blue heron on an optional "Save the Bay" car license plate. I never got one because the birds, though majestic, are the definitive hosts for a parasite that I was studying.

 

[worldtalker]

View attachment 1796694
Looking for lunch!

Found it.

 

[civilman1]

They steal some of my smaller bass and bluegill from my pond.I don't mind the bluegills but the grandkids love catching the bass. What do you do

 

[Megalodon]

They steal some of my smaller bass and bluegill from my pond.I don't mind the bluegills but the grandkids love catching the bass. What do you do

Provide some additional hiding places for the fish. Herons do their best feeding where the fish have no hiding places. Even pieces of clean construction debris (concrete block, drain pipe, etc) can provide useful hiding places.

You need the bluegills too - as forage for the bass.

If you start to notice a high incidence or high prevalence of parasites in/on your fish, then it will be time to try some non-lethal methods to repel those herons since they are the definitive host.

 

[newnan man]

Provide some additional hiding places for the fish. Herons do their best feeding where the fish have no hiding places. Even pieces of clean construction debris (concrete block, drain pipe, etc) can provide useful hiding places.

You need the bluegills too - as forage for the bass.

If you start to notice a high incidence or high prevalence of parasites in/on your fish, then it will be time to try some non-lethal methods to repel those herons since they are the definitive host.

Exactly! I have a couple of small Koi ponds and I have put in concrete blocks sideways. The fish hide in them & I can set the potted lilly pads on top. There is a Green Heron we call Fred. For years now he has made a good living eating the small mosquito fish & Molly's from the ponds. They reproduce so fast he is needed to keep them in check.
The big Heron's like to hang out by the beach fishermen who will throw the undersized fish to them. I have fed lots of small Whiting to those guys.

 

[SD51]

They steal some of my smaller bass and bluegill from my pond.I don't mind the bluegills but the grandkids love catching the bass. What do you do

We have a koi pond and I put a heron decoy at the pond edge. Any heron flying over will go elsewhere. Just don't put it out too soon in the Spring because that's mating season and that will attract them to your pond.

 

[A2coins]

Cool pics good info on that too,learn something new everyday. His beak looks like chop sticks

 

[Megalodon]

Cool pics good info on that too,learn something new everyday. His beak looks like chop sticks

They are very sharp at the tips. I'm pretty fearless about grabbing animals in distress (fishing line, etc) and helping them out - but this is the one I fear the most after hearing about another biologist impaled in the eye to the brain who died from his injuries when he tried to help a heron. I might do it if I had a heavy towel to wrap around that beak but I don't recommend it to anyone else. Rescuing seagulls wrapped in fishing line is a piece of cake by comparison...