A Great Blue Heron showing off its legs in the Thompson River, Kamloops.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Lyn MacDonald
September 10, 2023 - 7:00 PM
A wildlife photographer in Salmon Arm didn't let wildfire smoke stop her from snapping photos of great blue herons at her favourite spot on Shuswap Lake last week.
Sherri Mitchell loves to watch the long-legged birds walk and catch fish, and on this photography outing she saw several of the giant birds moving through the water in the smoke.
“It was hard to get a clear shot, the smoke and the background just blended in giving an eerie look to the photos,” she said. “There were 15 herons spread out and I’ve never seen that many at once before. They have a really neat walk with the way they lift their legs, it’s slow and methodical. Watching them trying to get a fish is really interesting, they will stand still for so long and then suddenly boing, they grab a fish.”
A great blue heron stands in Kamloops Lake.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Taylor Borth
Kelowna photographer Hollie Lorentz also snapped a few photos of great blue herons this summer at Munson Pond.
"When I'm out looking for any type of wildlife to photograph, I find it to be a totally peaceful, relaxing experience,” she said. “I’m only concentrating on what's out there and find it to be great mental health therapy. I’m always excited to see the great blue herons, they’re so graceful for being such a large bird.”
This great blue heron blends perfectly into its surroundings in the Shuswap.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Ian McAlpine
Great blue herons are the largest herons in North America and stand roughly one metre tall. They have large wingspans up to two metres and can fly up to 55 km/h, according to Canadian Geographic.
The big birds nest in colonies in trees near bodies of water, both salt and fresh, and are expert fishers. Either the heron will stand completely still and wait for a fish or it will wade into the water and drive the prey out. Suddenly it lunges its head into the water and typically will swallow the fish in one gulp. The birds also eat amphibians, insects and other small animals.
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Great blue herons can be found right across Canada, they are the country’s most widely spread heron. Most of the birds are in Canada only during the breeding season and go south for the winter, however, some live year-round on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts.
A Chase photographer snapped this photo of a great blue heron at a lake in the Cariboo.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Ann Steenhuysen
A great blue heron fluffs its feathers at a lake in Penticton.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Lilian Blashko
A blue heron on a sunny day at Munson Pond, Kelowna.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Hollie Lorentz
A blue heron swallowing a fish in the South Thompson River, Kamloops.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Agnes Wong
A blue heron walking in Shuswap Lake though thick wildfire smoke.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Sherri Mitchell
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