This Guy Was Good But…
Yesterday afternoon I was watching this great blue heron fishing in the salt marsh and he was quite skilled at catching fish, I saw him catch several in a short period of time.
But…he kept turning his back to me whenever he caught a fish. He was fine with me being there and photographing his success, however he did not seem to wish to show off his catch to me. Maybe he thought I was going to try to take it from him and wanted to gulp it down as quickly as possible while facing away from me. My plan in any case was to let him keep whatever he caught!
Phil Lanoue Photography 
Good catch!
Thanks Mike!
Maybe he thought you want to steal him half? This is quite simple: He just didn’t want to share! 😉
No he did not want to share! 🙂
Great shot Phil.
Thanks very much Jan.
The heron probably knows you have Jack at home, chomping at the bit for this bird’s fish!
Well when I turned my back on Jack last night I found him licking the scallops that I foolishly left unguarded for a minute which were supposed to be dinner for me. So I’m guessing he would give that fish a shot.
Uh huh. Now I know for sure Teddy and Jack have secret cell phones.
Perhaps he just doesn’t like people watching him eat Phil. I empathise. 🙂
I think that is a large part of it for sure Adrian!
I always hate those shots of me in the middle of chewing or eating…. can’t blame him at all.
Maybe he is sick of me posting photos of him always gulping fish.
I think you are probably right about his not wanting to lose the fish to you and I also think your plan was well founded. That’s a pretty sharp point on his fish skewer. Is that red a little bit of a previous meal deposited during a preen on his left side there?
It was that kind of a day…there was a cormorant fishing too and every time he caught a fish he showed me the back of his head. The GBH does have a very sharp bill and I would not want to be standing next to one that was very mad at me. That color red you see is part of their normal coloration along the wing and shoulder section. See this photo for an example: https://phillanoue.com/great-blue-heron-photos/#jp-carousel-791
He may have just wanted to show his regal profile 🙂
He did seem quite impressed with him self and why not? I don’t think I could jam my head into the water and come up with a fish! 😀
I actually really like this shot. It is a litte different perspective than we usually see.
Thanks Judy I thought the same thing. 🙂
Cool shot! Phil, Don’t let him stop you taking his photos, we want more… 🙂
Thank you Amy, glad you liked this shot! He was probably just being fussy that day, he will likely be right back to proudly showing off his catch to me soon. 🙂
This is an interesting side to the character of the subjects in your photos; it lets us into their world. It really adds to your series.
Thanks very much Charlie, I’m you have been enjoying seeing the photos and reading about their behavior!
Trust is earned my friend!!!
He trusts me to take his picture but as far as his dinner goes…
Fantastic shot, Phil. I’m so glad you wouldn’t want to tackle him for that fish. You’d probably come out of the tussle a bit worse for wear. 🙂
Thank you Sylvia! These guys have very sharp and powerful bills, I want not want to be standing next to one that was very mad at me that’s for sure.
Great shot. I bet he was being territorial about his catch. I heard somewhere recently (tuning thru tv channels) that the GBH eats fish as large as its head. Hope I heard that right. I don’t know if they were including the … bill (is that correct?)? This fish does look pretty big for a skinny mouth!
It never fails to amaze me what these birds can and will eat. I have seen one eat an eel the size of a baseball bat. The heron beat the heck out of that eel for close to an hour before getting it down.
Here’s one with a flounder!
https://phillanoue.com/great-blue-heron-photos/#jp-carousel-384
I admit I laughed out loud seeing that flounder! My God – it’s huge! Great photos, all.
Hey, I don’t like people watching me while I eat either!
good thing my birds don’t know what an easy life yours have. My seem to only catch little fish—your grab the big guys!! And then they won’t even share with you??? You need to teach them better manners!
Some of these guys definitely need not only better manners but they also need to be more photographer friendly.
There are times when I strongly suspect that my getting good shots is not their primary concern in life. 😯 Can you imagine that?!?
Thanks for looking Larry!
“You can look but you can’t touch”! Lovely to see such an unusual shot, Phil!
I’m glad you enjoyed this view from behind Maggie!
Gorgeous angle, wow!!!
It was bit different view but worked out I think because you can see the fish fairly nicely. Thanks for checking it out!
Just showing you his better side he was.
Believe it or not I don’t think the heron was primarily concerned with my shots. Such rudeness! 😉 😀
Probably thought you were eyeing up his tea!
That would be crossing the line for sure!
I love the colors of photography. I love the fact that the fish gives reflection. The bird … Everything is there! Everything is great!
I greatly appreciate your very kind words, thank you!
That’s a great capture now 😉
I’m very happy you enjoyed this photo!
Never mind 😀 He looks great from behind 😀
I’m sure he thinks he looks very good. They often appear to think quite highly of themselves and well they should. 🙂
They should 😀 😀