[EBB Sightings] an urbane night heron on Grand Ave.

  You have to admire the adaptability of our wild neighbors. Last weekend my husband David and I were at the Grand Lake theatre to see a movie, and saw an interesting window on urban bird life for our preview. As we approached the theatre from an under-the-freeway parking lot, we noticed ahead on the sidewalk a handsome, gray and black and white, red-eyed, hunting night heron, with a long and elegant, lone white nuptial plume tracing his dark back. He was a dramatic sight, especially as he stood next to the modern-art, vertically-striped, distressed gray aluminum trash receptacle: another photo op lost! 

The Grand Lake night herons are known entities across the street at the KFC, where they like to beg chicken! In fact, they have been such a nuisance that the KFC put up a sign outside its building asking folks not to feed the birds, which I always found highly amusing reading.

But our heron wasn't begging, he was searching. Up he hopped upon a low concrete wall delimiting a bit of planted shrubbery and herbs. Suddenly, I saw a brown streak running through the plants. What was that? Oh man, a rat! The heron froze and so did we. But the observers had been observed, and his eye was now upon us, so we left him to his hunt. 

Nice to see that heron providing a social service rather than taking handouts. I guess that opportunity is everywhere for these human acclimated birds.


Debbie Viess