Great Blue

Sometimes, bird watching surprises everyone involved.

Pixabay photo credit

Great Blue

When my daughter, Val, was seven years old, we visited Westlake Pond in Santa Cruz to see birds that hang out there. About an acre in size, it attracted all kinds of water fowl. My class at Cabrillo College had recently led a field trip there and I wanted to share it with Val. Pointing out the tiny ducklings following their parents, I hoped they’d survive the predation that often happens. Some fish will rise up and swallow a hapless chick, especially the really tiny ones. As we came around a stand of reeds and cattails, we encountered a Great Blue Heron. Seeing us suddenly appear, its beak gaped wide in fright. Then it lifted its prodigious body on those long wings and coasted across the pond to the opposite side. I stood in awe at the power behind that graceful glide to safety and knew I’d seek out these birds to watch and be inspired for the rest of my life.

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