Great Blue Herons in Sedona, AZ

My wife and I just returned from a couple of months down south - Palm Springs area and Apache Junction, AZ mostly. On the way back we stopped at Sedona. In the cottonwood trees at the Oak Creek RV Park where we stayed was a heron rookery. The birds were building nests and mating, a wonderful spectacle to observe. I shot with my Nikon 70-200mm and a 1.4x telextender.

The bird in this photo has left the nest to pick up nest building material.

This bird is about to land at the nest with a twig.

I never saw a heron fly into the nest and place the material it had gathered. They always handed off the stick to the bird that had stayed behind and that bird placed the item.

I watched these birds for some time as they preened and displayed. Later it became apparent that this was part of a mating ritual.

I am not sure which bird is which here but I think the one in the nest with the feather display is the female. (Does anyone know?) Moments later the birds mated after which the nest building routine continued.

It was a fascinating experience to be so close and to observe all this taking place. The birds did not pay the slightest attention to me or others in that RV park. If you can get away I would certainly recommend a visit there to witness this phenomenon so close up.

My next post will be images from Monument Valley.

Can somebody tell me where the amateurs forum is...I think I joined the wrong place! These are fantastic images Rod. I love number 1 and especially the one where they are exchanging the branch...I could look at these for hours!

I absolutely love the interaction of the two with that branch! Tack sharp and unique, with the backlit leaves framing them quite nicely. A real winner there, Rod!

Great interaction in the third image!

Nice series--i agree with Dan, 3 is my fav!