Great Blue Heron Sunning itself? (1 Viewer)

[OldFolks]

Heron Sunning itself

I've never seen this before, but then again, I lead a very sheltered life indoors.:-O
Is it a common occurrence?

 

[walternewton]

Maybe drying its wings - was the pose like you see with Cormorants?

 

[OldFolks]

Maybe drying its wings - was the pose like you see with Cormorants?

The link in the first post shows the pose. Usually when I see cormorants do it, they stand with the sun at their backs and wings extended (like vultures do). This heron was fully upright facing into the sun, so the extended wings (full underside) were exposed to the sun, along with the full underside of the body. Once it even lifted it's head straight up (as if looking at the sky). If it were a cold day I could see it, maybe, but it was 89 degrees farenheight at this time (4P.M.) and the Heron had been on the ground for quite a while before that (30-45 minutes before that), so it wasn't like it just got out of the water. If there had been another Heron around, I might have thought "mating", but it was the only bird out there.

 

[walternewton]

Sorry I missed the link in the first post...I don't know if it's "common" behavior, but I found this online gallery of other Herons in the mystery ("Yoga") pose:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/natureframingham/galleries/72157622878365394/

 

[etudiant]

Interesting pose.
It almost seems that the bird is using the wings as a reflector to help warm its body.

 

[bitterntwisted]

Great blue and grey herons both do this. The function is unclear, but it isn't display.

It probably is functionally equivalent to cormorants hanging out their wings, but no-one is quite sure why they do that either. In cormorants it's often assumed they are drying their wings but this is just one theory, and one that isn't very well supported.

Another theory is that the similar postures of herons, cormorants, and also some vultures and some storks all serve to aid digestion of large quantities of meat/fish.

 

[OldFolks]

Yoga

Well at least with Yoga, we can understand...

I know Vultures here do it especially in the cold weather with their backs to the sun, to warm themselves. At least it seems that way, since I see them first thing in the mornings and then they seem to want to soar more after sunning themselves. It is an interesting pose and it's just one of the more interesting things about the Herons. I love to watch them also sitting on one leg while seeming to crouch down, like an old man. They are one of my favorites to watch.

 

[OldFolks]

gular fluttering

This behavior is called gular fluttering, a method some species use to cool themselves.

At least that's what I have found thru a good source and long time birder.