Heron and Egret Squabble

It is always nice having some entertainment at breakfast. I normally get up first, check my email, and have a couple of cups of coffee. Usually things are pretty quiet here on our little gut which runs out to the White Oak River.

This morning was a little different. First I noticed a great white egret wading and fishing in the open water of the little swampy area in the vacant lot next to us.

A few minutes later, a blue heron showed up to challenge the great white for the pool of open water. This is the first time that I have seen an egrets and heron fight for territory but I have heard that it is very common.

While the birds did not actually fight, they were very aggressive towards each other.

The blue heron is a very large, somewhat grouchy, impressive bird. That did not seem to matter. The great white egret did not back down when the great blue heron tried to chase him out of the water.

The blue heron is much more skittish and camera shy. Perhaps he saw me taking pictures through the window, but for whatever reason, he backed up and flew away.

It is now about an hour after the first confrontation, and we have seen the blue heron make another try at taking over the swampy spot. The great white egret held his swamp once again.

Now the great white egret is out on dry ground standing guard over the open water of the swampy spot. He seems to be enjoying the morning sun while watching for intruders. I guess things are tough for birds looking for open shallow water.

I posted lots of pictures of the confrontation, but it was impossible to get a good shot of them together. This one was the best that I could do without completely spooking them. Pardon the label of on the picture of “Heron Squabble,” I did not notice it when posting the pictures.

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