Library #27 · B Wetland · Wave 2

Great Blue Heron

Ardea herodias · Ardeidae

Tall, patient hunter — North America’s largest common heron.

At a glance

Size: 38–54 in
Wingspan: 66–79 in
Habitat: Shorelines, marshes, rivers, ponds
Diet: Fish, frogs, small mammals, insects

Range: Much of North America; withdraws from ice north

Nesting: Large stick platform in a rookery tree.

Coloring pose idea: Wading hunter / spear-strike pose

Hear this bird

General call / song: Harsh frahnk squawk when flushed; quieter at the nest.

Mating / display: Bill clappering and stretch displays in the rookery.

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Play calls on All About Birds Species overview Audubon field guide

How to know it

Tall blue-gray wader with long S-curved neck and dagger bill.
White crown with black eyebrow plumes in adults.
Slow deep wingbeats; neck pulled into an S in flight.

Behavior

Stands motionless, then spears prey with a lightning strike.
Nests in colonies (rookeries) high in trees.
Often seen alone along suburban ponds.

Fun facts

Can hunt day or night.
White morph in Florida is related.
Neck vertebrae allow the sudden strike coil.

Companion page for the Birds Coloring Calendar series by R. J. D. B. Fact summaries are original educational text or short paraphrases with source links. Call playback via link to All About Birds / Cornell Lab. Re-test QR codes on a phone before final print. Not affiliated with Cornell Lab or Audubon.