Is that Big Blue sitting on a nest?

Yesterday evening when I arrived at the heronry, I was surprised at the lack of activity and the low numbers of birds, but when I started looking through the binocs, I got really excited. I could see little heads and long beaks peaking over the top of several nests, at least six in the first two trees! Both male and female Great Blue Herons sit on the eggs to keep them warm, switching places every couple of hours to go fish. The eggs are pale blue, and the female usually lays between 3 and 7 in her clutch. The chicks start to hatch out of the eggs in about a month (26 to 30 days of incubation).

Nesting has begun!

This was interesting. If you go back to the post on February 13, you'll find a photo with the seven original early bird couples. Six of these seven pairs are now the birds sitting on the nests, which only makes sense. They formed their pair bond earlier and settled into their nests earlier, and apparently got down to business earlier.   

Four of the original seven early birds happy in their 

nests keeping their eggs nice and warm.

Those little heads look so cute we have to go in for a closer view.

...let's go just a little closer on Head 2 

as he pops up a little higher.

The herons now are using 5 trees, but I think another tree I can see only glimpses of is also being used. Herons would regularly leave the five main trees and fly over a copse of trees to disappear in branches I could barely see. At one point about 15 birds flew up from that area and scattered, some landing in the five main trees, others flying out to fish.

The herons are gorgeous in flight. Big, graceful, striking.