New Kid on the Bayou!

The saying is usually a "new kid on the block" but when you live like I do..well, there is no "block" so the Bayou has to suffice!  There is a good share of demise on the Bayou as with any area where wildlife is left to its own.  Critters come..critters go......some just go a bit more violently than others.  Death is just another part of life.  The cycle of life for critters on the Bayou is rough and sometimes short.  That said, I will move on to happier things!  Today was a day of celebration of life.  A fresh face visited me on the pier! This was its second coming as a few days ago, Mark and I saw the young bird.  At that time, the bird did appear hungry.  Not having the net handy, there was little we could do so the bird went on its way.  Today, the youngster was back and so hungry!  This time, the net was on the pier and with a little work on my part, the bird had supper!  This one was not like the usual Green Herons or Snowy Egrets that have been coming for the past few months.  Today's bird was leery of my attempts to feed it but I am supposing that hunger can overcome fear as eventually, the bird did eat.  Since it would not come near me, I had to be happy with watching from quite a distance.  If the bird comes to know that I am a ready food source, I am sure that we will be friends before long.

Juvenile Yellow-Crowned Night Heron coming for handouts!

It is hard to pinpoint a definite species of bird when the bird is still wearing its juvenile plumage.  A good many birds look so similar at this age.   The speckled feathers are predominate in youngsters as it gives them a perfect camouflage in the marsh.  At night, the markings will also provide protection as the young bird roosts in the treetops.  This one, however, is a juvenile Yellow-Crowned Night Heron.  My first bird friend on the pier was a juvenile Yellow-Crown and since then, each year a new little one adopts the pier as a feeding station.  During the summer and early fall, I do not have visits from the adult Yellow-Crown but come winter, my old friend will return.  I am assuming that as the colder weather sets in, the food supply becomes short and the bird knows that I will supplement its diet with minnows.   The adult Yellow-Crowned Night Heron is still my favorite of the visitors to the pier.  It is the only one that feels fully comfortable enough to eat from my hand without reservation.  The bird and I go back a long way..we have been friends for nearly five years now.  The lifespan of a Night Heron is usually about six years so we have been interacting for most of its life. I have an inkling that the juveniles that come to visit are offspring of my friend.  I can just imagine the adult bird instructing its little one to "go to the pier..that lady will feed you!"...and I will.  It does seem that my menagerie is growing!  The birds just keep coming!