Great Blue Heron

The Great Blue Heron is a large, long-legged wading bird with slate-blue-grey plumage, a long S-curved neck, and a dagger-like yellow bill. Adults have a white face and crown with a black stripe extending into slender plumes trailing off the back of the head, and shaggy plumes drape from the neck and back during the breeding season.

Often mistaken at a distance for a crane, the Great Blue Heron is actually unrelated to true cranes; it can be distinguished in flight by its retracted, S-curved neck, whereas cranes fly with necks extended straight out.

Key field marks

• Very large size with slate-blue-grey overall plumage
• Long yellow bill and long, dark legs
• White crown with a black eye-stripe extending into trailing head plumes
• Neck folded into an S-shape in flight and at rest

Similar species

• Grey Heron: very similar but found in the Old World, with a slightly paler grey overall
• Sandhill Crane: superficially similar in size and shape but flies with neck extended, not curved, and lacks the heron's dagger bill shape

The S-curved neck in flight is the single most reliable feature separating herons like this species from cranes.

Range and habitat

Great Blue Herons range across nearly all of North America and into Central America and the Caribbean, inhabiting freshwater and saltwater wetlands, marshes, lake and river shorelines, and coastal shallows.

Migration

Northern populations migrate south in winter to warmer coastal and inland wetlands, while populations in milder climates, including much of the southern United States and coastal areas, are largely year-round residents.

Behavior

Great Blue Herons typically hunt alone, standing motionless or wading slowly through shallow water before striking prey with a rapid thrust of the bill; they roost and nest colonially in large stick-nest colonies called heronries, often high in trees.

Voice

The call is a harsh, guttural croak or squawk, often given when the bird is startled into flight or during territorial disputes at the nest colony.

Feeding

They feed opportunistically on fish, frogs, small mammals, reptiles, and large insects, using a stealthy stalk-and-strike technique in shallow water or along shorelines.

Nesting and breeding

Great Blue Herons nest colonially, often with dozens to hundreds of pairs building large stick nests in trees near water; both parents incubate the two to six eggs and feed the chicks by regurgitation.