Late this afternoon, Mark and I slipped out the door to get a bit of fresh air. It had been drizzling rain most of the day so this was our chance to escape the confines of the Little Bayou House. Our hike started back by the canebrake and took us the long way around the marsh to the pier. Ahh...my favorite place to be! As we walked down the length of the pier, a friend happily awaited our arrival. Moe, the Great Blue Heron, patiently sat atop one of the pier posts. As we neared. the bird never moved. I was within an arm's reach, all the while snapping photos, and he just sat posing for me. After our photo shoot, I asked Mark to fetch the net so we could reward our sweet friend.
Mark caught six or eight small mullet and Mr. Moe happily gulped them down. Then on the last throw, Mark caught several small mullet and one that was rather large. Well, Moe scooped up one tiny fish then made a leap to grab the big one. Oh, was he happy! His belly would be full tonight!
Mr. Moe struggled to hold onto the large mullet as he flew to the marsh. He knew better than to try to eat the big fish on the pier. There was a chance that the fish would flip out of his mouth and back into the water. In the marsh, there are huge mats of dead reeds that have been tumbled by the tide. These mats make for a fine place for the birds to dine. If they drop a fish, it merely falls on the mat and they can readily grab it again. Moe is smart. Too smart. He has figured out that we will feed him and also that the marsh mats make an ideal dining table. I wonder what he will learn next! I love this bird.
Earlier today, Mark and I headed to the pier. I had one of those days where the best thing to do was escape. The pier and all of its peace beckoned so I heeded the call. There I can relax and the cares of the world cannot reach me. While there, I decided to catch a few little mullet to feed the young heron. A few days ago, the poor, little rascal was attacked by a large male heron. Obviously, the larger, older male was defending its territory and the youngster was viewed as a threat. I was happy to see the young bird back begging for handouts. The bird and I have bonded somewhat. As I was tossing mullet the young bird, I asked Mark to photograph my attempts at hand feeding the critter. This did not go well. Both the bird and Mark had problems with my feeding attempts. The bird was not overly confident about being so close to me and, well, Mark was new to this "behind the camera" bit. I am the one usually taking the pictures but he humored me and tried.
The first dozen or so photographs are great if you ever wanted to study the feet of a Great Blue Heron. For some reason, that is all that Mark captured with the camera. Eleven photographs of a bird's feet are comical if nothing else. After a bit, however, Mark got it right and captured some great photos but none of me hand feeding the heron since the bird did not cooperate. Obviously, its going to take a some patience to tame the bird enough to give it a mullet "up close and personal".
The young heron will most likely be chased from the area soon. While herons usually nest in colonies of up to 500 birds, they will defend their feeding territories from intruders. Most of the time, they have no problem with other Great Blues but they are know to chase other birds and even humans away. My little friend was the recipient of a rather rude bump on the head by the larger bird but he still came back to beg for handouts. Training one to accept food from the hand is a long, drawn out process but I have the patience. Plus! This gives Mark a little more practice with the camera!
We all have them. We love them to pieces but, at times, have to shake our heads at their actions. Some friends take a mile when offered an inch. It does not damper the friendship but can be a bit bewildering.
My new found critter friend, the young heron, has been coming regularly to the pier for its handouts. This morning, it was there waiting before I even came out the door. By the time I made it to the pier, the bird was doing a steady bit of pacing as if to say "Hurry up with breakfast, please!" I obliged and caught it a nice helping of menhaden. Then a bit later, the bird came back for a mid-morning snack. For being such a skinny bird, that thing can eat!
Well, along about ten o'clock, I decided that I had enough fishing for the time being but I still had a nice bucketful of menhaden. Hmmm? With the aerator going, the minnows should stay alive so I did not toss them back into the water. My scoop net was laid across the top of the bucket to provide a bit of shade and I headed to the Little Bayou House to do a bit of painting. Son was installing the new screen doors, today! Touch up painting would be required if he had to do any trimming. I had hopes to return to the pier to catch more trout after my chores were complete.
Along about four in the afternoon, I headed back to the pier to catch my friend red-handed (or red-beaked, as the case was.) The young heron had cleaned my bait bucket! Only three minnows remained in the bottom of the bucket and they were exhausted from dodging that dagger-like beak! Give that bird an inch and it will eat you out of house and home (to jumble up some idioms). That silly bird had helped itself to the contents of my bait bucket! Then, to top it all off, the bird stood begging for yet more minnows! Silly bird! Some friend you are!
Have you ever noticed how critters seem to fully appreciate even the tiniest act of kindness? Without words, they can let you know that your actions mean the world to them. Today was the sort of day that all things went well and it was topped off with a show of gratitude that brought smiles to the face.
Mark and I had a busy day so late in the afternoon, we called it quits and headed to the pier. The fishing poles had sat idle long enough and we needed to put them back into action. The Bay was teeming with menhaden which is our favorite bait fish. Those shiners really can lure the fish to bite. We settled in with our baited lines to await the first nibble but it was not long before I was feeding our bait to a different critter! A Great Blue Heron came to visit us and the poor thing looked so hungry! This was a young bird that obviously had not mastered the art of fishing as well as it should have so it had taken to begging for a handout now and again. I was ready to oblige the bird and tossed it a nice sized menhaden.
At first the bird was hesitant to accept the fish. It was a bit skittish of the two humans sitting on the pier even though one was willing to supply its supper. After a bit of coaxing on my part the bird eased up closer to snag its fish. Another fish was tossed and the bird was quicker on the take. After six more fish, the heron would dart in to grab its fish with no qualms whatsoever. After a couple more fish, the bird did a happy dance to show its gratitude for the handout. Mark made the comment that I had made a new friend and I thought "Yep, and it will be back for more of our bait!" I guess we had better catch twice as much as we need if I plan on feeding this fine, feathered friend each day!
