Monday, January 17, 2011

Great Blue Heron - Juvenile

I've posted several images of Great Blue Herons over the past nine months, but I've never posted one of a juvenile. I haven't seen very many, but I realized this past autumn that a few were juveniles.
Both of the images above were taken at RNWR, but on different days. The top image of a juvenile was taken on November 26, while the bottom image of an adult was taken on December 8.
As you can see, the juvenile is missing the long, shaggy feathers on its back and lower neck. It also has a speckled neck instead of the silky gray-blue of the adult and overall its coloration is not as well defined. Although it is hard to tell from the angle in the image, Sibley points out that the crown of the juvenile is dark compared to the white crown of the adult.

1 comment:

  1. Fantastic images! Composition, color and lighting are all stunning. These are highly marketable images is you ever decide to take that leap, only assuming you havnt yet. Keep up the fantastic work!

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