• Great Blue Heron

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  Great Blue Heron information and facts:

  Type: Bird
  Diet: Carnivore
  Average lifespan in the wild: 15 years
  Size: Body, 3.2 to 4.5 ft (1 to 1.4 m); Wingspan, 5.5 to 6.6 ft (1.7 to 2 m)
  Weight: 4.6 to 7.3 lbs (2.1 to 2.5 kg)
  Group name: Colony

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  What does a Great Blue Heron look like?

  The tall, long-legged great blue heron is the most common and largest of North American herons. Great blue herons' size (3.2 to 4.5 feet/1 to 1.4 meters) and wide wingspan (5.5 to 6.6 feet/1.7 to 2 meters) make them a joy to see in flight. They can cruise at some 20 to 30 miles (32 to 48 kilometers) an hour.

• Great Blue Heron video.
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  Where do Great Blue Herons live?

  Great blue herons are waders, typically seen along coastlines, in marshes, or near the shores of ponds or streams. They are expert fishers. Herons snare their aquatic prey by walking slowly, or standing still for long periods of time and waiting for fish to come within range of their long necks and blade-like bills. The deathblow is delivered with a quick thrust of the sharp bill, and the prey is swallowed whole. Great blue herons have been known to choke to death by attempting to swallow fish too large for their long, S-shaped necks.
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  What does a Great Blue Heron eat?

  Though they are best known as fishers, mice constitute a large part of their diet, and they also eat insects and other small creatures.
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  How many eggs does a Great Blue Heron lay?

  Though great blue herons hunt alone, they typically nest in colonies. They prefer tall trees, but sometimes nest in low shrubs. Females produce two to seven eggs, which both parents protect and incubate. Chicks can survive on their own by about two months of age.

• Great Blue Heron images

  
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