46 inches long with a 72 inch wingspan. The Great Blue Heron is a large, long legged, and long necked wader. Its back, wings, and belly are blue gray in color. It has a white crown and face. There is a black plume extending from above and behind the eye to beyond the back of the head. The neck is brownish buff with a black bordered white stripe down the center of the foreneck. It has a long thick yellow bill and brownish or greenish legs. During breeding season it has shaggy neck and head plumes.
The Great Blue Heron is a common summer resident in the area. It can show up as early as mid March and be seen until November.
The Great Blue Heron usually holds its head in an “S” curve while at rest and also while flying with long slow wingbeats. It is one of the most widespread and adaptable wading birds in North America. It nests mostly in colonies up to several hundred pairs. This species is primarily a fish eater, wading (often belly deep) along the shoreline. It call is a loud hoarse croaky “fraaahnk”.
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