Great Blue Heron in Distress

We’ve had a Great Blue Heron hanging around the neighborhood for the past few months. It’s quite a sight, especially when winging its way over the mesquite-dotted pasture that surrounds us; there’s a vaguely prehistoric look to its flight. While it prefers to wade along the shoreline of the two ponds, it’s not unusual to see it standing out in the pasture, head just clearing the thick grass that the early plentiful rains brought to life.

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed something different about the bird, specifically his flight. It’s very skittish and difficult to get close to, but it appeared that it had something dangling from one leg as it took to the air. I finally decided that its leg was dangling, and I confirmed this a few days ago when I was able to get close enough to take some photos with a zoom lens. Those are shown below; click on each to see a larger version. Please note that these are difficult to look at; the injury is gruesome.

I don’t have a clue as to what caused the injury. It doesn’t seem to affect the bird’s flight, and it doesn’t look uncomfortable standing on one leg, but I can’t imagine that it can hunt for food with ease, because it can’t walk through the shallow waters looking for fish, frogs, and insects that make up its primary diet. One would also think that the injury makes the heron more susceptible to predators like coyotes.

I’ve contacted Burr Williams, executive director of the Sibley Nature Center and local wildlife expert, and he in turn has contacted a local veterinarian to see what, if anything, might be done for the bird. Capturing the poor thing will be a challenge, and rehabilitation of such a drastic injury might not be feasible. I’ll let you know how this plays out.

It’s a tough world out there, sometimes.