Accuracy comes with experience for Grey Heron
THE Grey Heron is a very common and very widespread bird that is unlikely to be confused with any other wild bird found in Ireland. Its name in English refers to its colour while its name in Irish refers to its habitat: ‘Corr réisc’, the ‘corr’ or heron of the ‘riasc’ meaning a marsh, bog or other such wetland.
Any wet place is the haunt of the Grey Heron be it river, lake, stream, wet corner of a field, even the seashore. It’s mainly grey colour separates it from other members of its family like bitterns and the smaller, white egrets. Its stature is also unmistakable.
It often stands motionless at the water’s edge with its head pulled down on its body and its long neck on its chest giving the impression that it has no neck and that it has a slight hump on its back. The impression is deceitful however. The bird is not standing there admiring the scenery; though not moving, it is actively hunting.
Standing motionless helps it to blend in with the surroundings. It waits patiently and watches intently until prey comes within striking distance. The prey may be a fish, a Common Frog, a Brown Rat, a duckling or just an insect. Once the unfortunate victim is within striking distance the tall bird bends forward suddenly on its long brown legs, its retracted neck springs forward and its dagger-sharp, pinkish-yellow bill strikes with deadly accuracy.
Accuracy comes with age and experience. Young birds born last summer are under pressure now to find enough to eat. Many die of starvation trying to hone their killing skills. While the Irish Grey Heron population is believed to be sedentary, populations in Britain and Scandinavia are not as some of their birds come here in winter.
Hunger and desperation forces some birds to abandon fishing in wild places and to try their luck at garden ponds where the fish are sitting ducks. Homeowners obviously need to take steps to protect their ornamental fish. At very least, fish need places to hide when danger threatens, preferably lots of native vegetation.
A net over the pond is effective and it also catches autumn leaves but it can look unsightly. Trip wires around the edge of the pond may frustrate birds trying to get a fishing spot near the water’s edge and a plastic heron or ornamental cat from a garden centre may deter cautious young Grey Herons from landing.