This past week I received a tip from my mother, pointing out she had seen some ‘big white birds’ while driving home. Likely they were Great Egrets, which I haven’t had too much success in photographing in the past, so I decided to check it out. Since I wasn’t very familiar with the area, I pulled it up on Nasa Worldwind to find out what marshes, trails, etc., might be over there. This is a pretty neat tool, because I discovered what appeared to be a parking lot and nature trails, in the middle of some large wetlands and small lakes, without even getting in my car yet.
Upon arriving, I found out the name of this place, the Robert Long nature park, in Commerce Township. A fairly large parcel of land tucked in a corner, surrounded by a large highway and condominiums. What soon became very apparent is that a lot of birds like this place, primarily herons (Great Blues, Greens, Black-crown night herons, and of course Great Egrets), Canada geese, a few species of ducks, many swallows and song sparrows as well. Some later net research turned up this park is home to the endangered Redside dace fish
One of the neat experiences while there was watching a Great Blue Heron catching voles. First time I have ever seen a heron catching small mammals, thinking their diet consisted mostly of fish or frogs. The heron obviously laid claim to this little section of a pond as he spent the entire morning there. It was also quite proficient at snagging these little rodents, catching three large ones while I was there. ‘He’ also seemed to have a procedure for ingesting them. After stalking them in the grass and catching one, he would take it over to the pond edge and dunk it in the water several times. I am not sure if he was drowning it so it would stop squirming, wetting it so it would slide down his throat easier, or merely adding a little dipping sauce. It was just interesting to watch the entire sequence.
Many of the herons here seemed pretty accustomed to being around people, which makes it easier for photography. The egrets on the other hand were quite skittish, and I really didn’t find any good situations in which to photograph them this time. All in all, it was quite an interesting spot for photography, a thriving habitat, and warrants many future return visits. The only downside is that the Canada geese population here was quite large, which comes with the mess and the smell. I will look forward to seeing what migration brings through this spot.
So, pay attention to these lessons;
1) Listen to your mom
2) A pet heron and a pet rodent probably will not work out.
