Great Blue Heron

For a couple of days last week a Great blue heron was always near a ditch one of the root labbers passes on the drive home.  She got a good pic of it one day and it reminded her of the bird research of our lab alum Sara Zaleski. During the late summer of 2014, large ditches which held water in August were surveyed for wading birds. Surveys were conducted for three months. Great blue herons were the only wading bird detected during surveys. Results indicate great blue herons prefer large ditches which hold water throughout most of the year and are sparsely vegetated. Great blue herons were likely utilizing the ditches as foraging habitat. To manage ditches for great blue heron habitat, it is best to select large ditches and keep them clear of vegetation by regularly mowing or dredging the ditch.