November 2015 – Hyde Park, London

I saw two of these birds whilst in London. The other was in a small pond nearer Buckingham Palace. They seemed a bit wary & solitary, but tolerant of humans.

Grey Heron

American Bittern

April 2014 – Fern Ridge Lake, Eugene, Oregon

A pair of American Bitterns flew overhead just for a moment… I managed to snap one quick shot.

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron

February 2013 – Cahuita, Costa Rica

A few of these birds were wading in the shallow waters near the entrance to Cahuita National Park. They were very tame for herons – most herons I’ve encountered have been a lot more skittish. It was nice of this one to pose for this photo…

Green Heron

February 2013 – The Sloth Sanctuary, Costa Rica

I don’t see a lot of Green Herons, but somehow I’ve managed to get a lot of decent shots of them. This one was along a slough near the Sloth Sanctuary, which is just south of Limon, Costa Rica.

Green Heron

May 2011 – Oregon Garden, Oregon

I saw this Green Heron at the Oregon Garden on May 22, 2011. It was following the shoreline of one of the ponds late in the day. It was pretty focused on hunting for poly-wogs (which were plentiful), and I was able to get fairly close. Encountering this bird when and where I did, and with just enough light was a bit lucky. I got a couple shots of him hunting and eating, but the movement was so fast, it blurred out – the light was low, and I had to use a slower shutter speed. In addition, I was so excited, I forget to check the switch for the image stabilizer on my lens. Of course, it was off… So, a number of my shots have just a touch of jitter blur. But, a few of them came out OK.

Boat-billed Heron

February 2013 – Cahuita, Costa Rica

These are another unlikely-looking bird. The bill is neat, but I love the feet on this bird. A number of these were hanging out in the trees near the entrance to Cahuita National Park in the early morning.

Bare-throated Tiger-Heron

February 2013 – Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica

This bird was bellowing in the early morning on a small island in a lagoon near Carate Beach.

Tricolored Heron

February 2013 – Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica

There is a lagoon in the Carate Beach area, that comes within about 100 yards of the ocean. A good variety of herons and related birds probe the water’s edge in the early morning.

Tricolored Heron

Black-crowned Night Heron

May 2005 – Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, OR
This was my first sighting of this species… flying in front of some sagebrush. It’s so distinctive, I didn’t need any book to tell me what it was.