crab eaters

This morning there was a Yellow-crowned Night-Herons in the open water in the middle of the marsh and another one perched in a Red Cedar by the shore of the pond. This was later in the morning than usual (I had an early morning errand so I didn't get to do an abbreviated morning walk until after a late breakfast). I didn't expect to see night-herons at mid-morning even on an overcast day. However the daily routine of these birds is as much about the tides as it is about the time of day and I think the appeal of these tidal ponds for Nyctanassa violacea is the presence of small Blue Claw Crabs, a known favorite of this species. I often see bits and pieces of the crabs scattered around (on the dock next door, on the banks of the pond and nearby shore, even on one of our chairs by the pond); they are apparently the remains of night-heron dinners. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron and the ever-present Green Heron are both local nesters somewhere here on the north side of the bay; most of the other herons and other water birds nest on the opposite side near the ocean, most often in or near the bay islands and often in colonies.

Eric Salzman