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  • Re: The Heron Showed Up again today

    From jmcquown@21:1/5 to Leon Fisk on Sun Apr 24 09:58:38 2022
    On 4/24/2022 9:51 AM, Leon Fisk wrote:
    On Sun, 24 Apr 2022 09:20:47 -0400
    jmcquown <j_mcquown@comcast.net> wrote:

    Don't know why but this is the third time I've seen it in as many days:

    https://i.postimg.cc/QCPNJCsg/blue-strolling2.jpg

    They are magnificent looking birds!

    Jill in Southern South Carolina

    Nice picts :)

    They will eat pretty much anything that moves and can be subdued.
    Frogs, toads, mice, snakes, lizards, salamanders, insects... Would guess
    it has been finding something of interest to munch on while strolling
    around your place...

    Probably anole lizards or peepers (tiny tree frogs). I hadn't really considered it. It is unusual to see one strolling around for days in a
    row. :) They are lovely big birds!

    Jill

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  • From Leon Fisk@21:1/5 to jmcquown on Sun Apr 24 09:51:58 2022
    On Sun, 24 Apr 2022 09:20:47 -0400
    jmcquown <j_mcquown@comcast.net> wrote:

    Don't know why but this is the third time I've seen it in as many days:

    https://i.postimg.cc/QCPNJCsg/blue-strolling2.jpg

    They are magnificent looking birds!

    Jill in Southern South Carolina

    Nice picts :)

    They will eat pretty much anything that moves and can be subdued.
    Frogs, toads, mice, snakes, lizards, salamanders, insects... Would guess
    it has been finding something of interest to munch on while strolling
    around your place...

    --
    Leon Fisk
    Grand Rapids MI

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  • From Leon Fisk@21:1/5 to jmcquown on Sun Apr 24 10:14:36 2022
    On Sun, 24 Apr 2022 09:58:38 -0400
    jmcquown <j_mcquown@comcast.net> wrote:

    <snip>
    Probably anole lizards...

    Those are cool. Nothing like that in my area...

    Years ago while out biking... I spooked a Great Blue off a hayfield
    while going past. The writhing snake in its beak was obvious to see as
    it took flight. Looked up what they eat when I got back home and found
    snakes were on their yummy list along with many other small
    critters I had not considered ;-)

    --
    Leon Fisk
    Grand Rapids MI

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  • From jmcquown@21:1/5 to All on Sun Apr 24 09:20:47 2022
    Don't know why but this is the third time I've seen it in as many days:

    https://i.postimg.cc/QCPNJCsg/blue-strolling2.jpg

    They are magnificent looking birds!

    Jill in Southern South Carolina

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)
  • From jmcquown@21:1/5 to Leon Fisk on Sun Apr 24 11:23:20 2022
    On 4/24/2022 10:14 AM, Leon Fisk wrote:
    On Sun, 24 Apr 2022 09:58:38 -0400
    jmcquown <j_mcquown@comcast.net> wrote:

    <snip>
    Probably anole lizards...

    Those are cool. Nothing like that in my area...

    Years ago while out biking... I spooked a Great Blue off a hayfield
    while going past. The writhing snake in its beak was obvious to see as
    it took flight. Looked up what they eat when I got back home and found
    snakes were on their yummy list along with many other small
    critters I had not considered ;-)


    Black snakes (non-venonmous) are common in this area although I haven't
    seen any in a around my house this year. I was surprised to learn
    herons eat snakes, thanks!

    Some years back I saw a black snake when there was a nesting pair of
    Cardinals in the pyracantha next to garage. One day I was looking out
    the window and saw the cardinals going crazy. Turned out they were
    trying to beat off a snake. They had babies in the nest that had not
    yet fledged. They tried but couldn't stop it from slithering up the
    tree and taking the baby birds from the nest.

    I think there are some cardinals nesting in that pyracantha again.
    Maybe even a fledgling. Perhaps I could talk the Heron to walk up my
    driveway to where the nest is to check for snakes. ;)

    Jill

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  • From Leon Fisk@21:1/5 to jmcquown on Sun Apr 24 12:54:17 2022
    On Sun, 24 Apr 2022 11:23:20 -0400
    jmcquown <j_mcquown@comcast.net> wrote:

    <snip>
    I think there are some cardinals nesting in that pyracantha again.
    Maybe even a fledgling. Perhaps I could talk the Heron to walk up my >driveway to where the nest is to check for snakes. ;)

    Now that's a plan I'd like to see in action ;-)

    Watched a presentation at the zoo many years ago with a
    Secretary bird. It beat the crap out of a rubber snake they laid out for
    it. In their native environment they take on Adders and Cobras. The
    feathered Rikki-Tikki-Tavi :)

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secretarybird#Food_and_feeding

    --
    Leon Fisk
    Grand Rapids MI

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  • From jmcquown@21:1/5 to Leon Fisk on Sun Apr 24 14:07:39 2022
    On 4/24/2022 12:54 PM, Leon Fisk wrote:
    On Sun, 24 Apr 2022 11:23:20 -0400
    jmcquown <j_mcquown@comcast.net> wrote:

    <snip>
    I think there are some cardinals nesting in that pyracantha again.
    Maybe even a fledgling. Perhaps I could talk the Heron to walk up my
    driveway to where the nest is to check for snakes. ;)

    Now that's a plan I'd like to see in action ;-)

    Watched a presentation at the zoo many years ago with a
    Secretary bird. It beat the crap out of a rubber snake they laid out for
    it. In their native environment they take on Adders and Cobras. The
    feathered Rikki-Tikki-Tavi :)

    Rudyard Kipling?


    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secretarybird#Food_and_feeding


    That's fun stuff. I like watching the nature programs on PBS about
    birds. :)

    Jill

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  • From Leon Fisk@21:1/5 to jmcquown on Sun Apr 24 14:38:11 2022
    On Sun, 24 Apr 2022 14:07:39 -0400
    jmcquown <j_mcquown@comcast.net> wrote:

    <snip>
    feathered Rikki-Tikki-Tavi :)

    Rudyard Kipling?

    Yeah, the classic Mongoose versus Cobra story...

    --
    Leon Fisk
    Grand Rapids MI

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