One of the nature-related field trips on my list has been to find the Great Blue Heron Rookery. I've seen many pictures of one at the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, so I wrote down the coordinates, we entered them in the GPS, and off we went.
So, what is a rookery?
It's a communal nesting ground for birds, mostly found in wetland areas.
All those "blobs" in that tree are heron nests. There were 2 other trees filled with nests also, for a total of 100+ nests in this small area.
All those "blobs" in that tree are heron nests. There were 2 other trees filled with nests also, for a total of 100+ nests in this small area.
Here is a closer look where you can see the herons sitting or standing in their nests.
I thought they were amazing birds to watch.
LittleJ said they looked like paper airplanes as they glided.
We stayed and watched for a good 20 minutes. The rookery is located right along a busy road with the only parking being a simple pull-off, so you are literally standing on the berm while you watch.
Even so, it's worth a stop. Enjoy!
great post, cindy - informative and interesting. i was once fortunate enough to view a tree full of herons at discovery park in seattle. it was amazing! (however, since living on hood canal, i've discovered one heron habit i'm not so fond of. ha ha)
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