On an unusually warm winter day when temperatures soared into the 60’s (16 degrees C), this Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) was taking advantage of the conditions to fish in a small pond at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The heron struck repeatedly during the time that I watched him and appeared to be having a good deal of success, although the fish were all pretty small, like the one in the second image below.
It was wonderful to walk about in the warmth and sunshine of a spring-like day, a foretaste of things to come. As I write this posting, however, a cold rain is falling that forecasters predict might turn into a couple of inches of snow.
I personally have had enough of winter this year with an unusually snowy January and am ready for spring to arrive. I feel a little like a child in the back seat of a car during a long road trip, endlessly inquiring, “Are we there yet?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Great captures, Mike… and I’m sitting in the back seat right with you!
Truly a joy to see these photos, Mike. The still water, reflections and wonderful details of feathers and fish, and the action of the catch made this series a real pleasure.
Such fabulous shots. Beautiful. Thank you for sharing, Mike.
Ours landed on a frozen pond! Oh my!
Blue Rock Horses Frederick County, Virginia bluerockhorses.com
Yikes. I have watched geese land on a frozen pond and it was not exactly a gentle landing. I suspect that it might be the equally awkward with a heron.
What Jet Eliot said! 🙂
So cute!