Do Great Blue Herons (Ardea herodias) have long necks? If you looked at the first image, you undoubtedly would respond that they most certainly do. If you looked at the second image, though, you might hesitate in responding to my question.
Where does the neck go? In the first photo, the heron seems to have a neck-to-body ration relatively equivalent to that of a giraffe, but a giraffe, as far as I know, is not able to retract its neck the way that the heron can.
I sometimes imagine that a heron can contract its neck like the Slinky that I remember from my childhood. You could stretch out its coils a long way and it would return to its original shape. On a side note, my favorite “trick” was getting the Slinky to walk down a set of stairs.
I do not know heron physiology very well, but I think the heron’s neck is flexible enough that it can pull the neck into a tight S-curve against its body. From certain angles, it looks like the heron’s neck has gotten considerably shorter when it does this.
So what about you? Are you willing to stick out your neck when something grabs your attention or do you tend to hunker down and move slowly and cautiously forward? It is a good question to ask yourself as we begin a new year, full of new opportunities and possibilities. How bold or fearful do you feel?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Wonderful photos as usual and I love your analogy of the heron’s neck position to our bold or cautious attitude toward life. These are challenging times and, maybe, we should take a lesson from the patient and courageous great blue heron.
Well said, I totally agree Ann😊
Great photos, Mike. I have seen them both ways, but I never gave it much thought.
Fascinating – now I wan to know exactly how that neck works. Thanks for sharing.
Great pair of photos! I already had a slinky in my head, vis-a-vis your two pics, before I read the post. Great minds, I guess. 🙂
Great minds? I like the way that you think, Tina, though I wonder if it has more to do with similar childhood experiences. I am always interested to learn what goes though other peoples’ minds when they see my photos and I appreciated your sharing your impressions.
That’s quite a contrast 😉
It is the same heron, with the photos taken only a minute or two apart. The contrast is shocking to some, though I am quite used to seeing herons in a variety of situations.
Wonderful post! Gazing at the photos the word “versatility” comes to mind. Reading the commentary, particularly the last paragraph, a quote comes to mind (no surprise there, right?). “In any given moment we have two options : to step forward into growth or step back into safety.” – Unknown. I say unknown even though the quote is often attributed to Abraham Maslow. Maslow did write a more lengthy piece in the 1966 book “The Psychology of Science” on the same theme, but I like this quote for its to the point brevity and ease of memorizing! Thank-you, Mr. Mike!
Nice detail 😃😃
I like your heron neck metaphor for how one approaches new opportunities. Both photos are great but I especially love the first photo because that stretched neck is so emphatic in the composition.
Thanks, Laura. I too prefer the first photo, but wanted to include the second one to show the contrast. When I sat down to write the post, I thought it would simply be a descriptive one, but somehow ideas started bouncing around in my head and the simple metaphor emerged. It is a crazy process in the sense that I never have more than a sketchy mental outline and a few selected photos when I sit down to compose a post. As soon as I am finished, I will hit the Publish button. Sometimes the prose is a bit ragged or unpolished, but I am ok with that. 🙂
This is wonderfully humorous Mike! and the challenge at the end is startlingly relevant to me at this moment, so much so that I was quite taken aback 🙂 The lesson of the Great Blue Heron is probably one I’ll never forget! Thanks xx
Your comment really made my day, Liz. You have read enough of my posts to know that I am prone to go off on philosophical tangents at times. There is a kind of universality in most of the themes that I bring up. Often they are related to the choices we face. It is easy to oversimplify them into two options but in real life, there are many more shades of gray. So, for example, it is not simply a choice between being bold or being tentative–there are lots of options somewhere in the middle. That being said, it is not always about taking small steps–sometimes a huge first step is required when choosing a particular option.
Yes! Absolutely bang on. while you don’t know the detail of it you’re actually helping me navigate some stuff that’s confusing for me right now. Thank you!
I also love the analogy of sticking one’s neck out! In this politically fraught environment, we all have to face up to challenges. When the time comes, will we have the courage? (Great pictures too!)
Just love the two photos together. And your question is a good one, too! Thanks, Mike.
Thanks, Molly. I let my mind meander sometimes when I am writing a posting and it is always fun to pose questions in an effort to prompt people to think. 🙂