Driving around Madison County, or almost anywhere in Indiana, it’s not unusual to see a huge, solitary bird flying over.

Slow wing beats, long legs trailing behind, its neck tucked back, and a head with a very long bill leading the way identifies this bird as a great blue heron.

This bird is very common in our area, especially around White River, Fall Creek and any other lake or pond.

While it’s occasionally seen in water-filled roadside ditches, these are not a normal hangout for this bird.

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The great blue is almost four feet tall with a gray body. It has a white head capped with a black crown and a long pointed black feather trailing off the back. The feathers on its chest often stick out from the body like a plume. Its bill is heavy and yellow, and its legs are grayish. It has a wingspread of about six feet.

This heron always hunts alone, but once I saw seven on a long, wide stretch of Fall Creek. None were close to each other, though.

The bird stands quietly in the shallows, waiting for a small fish, frog, snake or other critter to join him for lunch. The great blue heron is fun to watch stalking his prey, unless you are a landowner with a small pond of goldfish or something similar.

The heron often finds these locations, and it becomes his own lunch buffet, much to the chagrin of the pond owner. It swallows its food whole, sometimes choking on a meal that’s too large.

When not hunting, and during breeding season, herons live in trees in large colonies called rookeries or heronries. There can be just a few birds or more than 100 living together.

After a period of time, the trees and all the undergrowth die because of the droppings accumulating on the ground. Large areas of woods can be killed, and if you come near the area, you will be able to smell the stench.

The green heron, while common to this area, is seldom seen. I have seen several while I was fishing or paddling through a swampy area, but I have never seen one flying. The green heron is normally nocturnal, being seen around dawn or dusk. The exception to this is when they are extremely hungry or feeding young. Then, they will feed during daylight hours.

This heron is much smaller, standing only about 16 to 18 inches tall. It has yellow legs and a greenish head, back and wings. Its neck is a rust red, and it has a sharp, dark beak. It feeds primarily on the same foods as the great blue heron. Fish are its favorite, but it also eats frogs, snakes and mice. The green heron is one of few animal species known to use tools. It will bait a fish, dropping pieces of bread, insects and other items into the water to attract his prey. When the fish comes to the bait, the heron has his dinner. The green heron lives more in swampy areas or marshes, where its coloring makes great camouflage. This is one of the reasons it is not often seen by people.

The black-crowned night heron is another heron in our area, although it is seldom seen. While the books say it is common around the world and here in the United States, I don’t know if I have ever seen one. Bigger than a green heron at 25 inches long, it also is nocturnal, feeding at night and early morning.

It should be easily seen as it is mostly white with a black head, bill and back. It has short, yellow legs. It is also known to bait its prey, which is apparently common among heron species.

It is always enjoyable to watch one of these (usually the great blue) feeding. They are extremely patient and stand for many minutes waiting for food to approach close enough to capture. Then, their strike is almost too fast to follow.

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