SUMMER OF HERON LOVE PART II

For Part I of the Heron Rookery Photo-Recap, click here:

https://smbasblog.wordpress.com/2014/09/12/a-summer-of-heron-love-draws-to-a-close/

Photo-Recap Part II

The young Snowy Egrets, Great Egrets and Black Crowned Night Heron chicks  grow rapidly and practice wing flapping from the nest-

Before trying it out over a cement landing-

Nests hold up to five chicks, so interaction is frequent-

The chicks begin to develop adult plumage, but still retain downy feathers as they develop–

As they grow bigger and more confident with their wings–

They will fly across Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu Lagoon to forage for fish-

Other species of young birds at the lagoon also learn what to eat (and what not to)-

Eventually, most chicks will fly off to other feeding grounds since Malibu Lagoon will not support all the extra mouths. One favorite spot is the Marina del Rey channel-

And as the chicks learn to hold their own in the world,  the rookery season completes it’s nesting cycle. In April, it will all begin again at the Malibu Country Mart Heron and Cormorant Rookery. Most of the trees are adjacent to the Starbucks parking lot, so next spring, grab a latte and look up…

I took all of the photos between April 2014 and September 2014 at the Malibu Rookery (except for location as noted at Marina del Rey).

Laurel Hoctor Jones, Education Chair