The Lincoln Rookery is filled with Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons building nests. Watching these birds building their nests is always fun and yesterday was my first visit to the rookery this year. The Great Egret nests in the rookery I visited in Florida a few weeks ago had eggs and even hatched chicks. It’s hard to tell if any of the nests in the Lincoln Rookery have eggs. Most of the birds seemed to be working on the construction phase of the nest yesterday. The male builds a platform from long sticks and twigs before pairing up with a female. The male attracts a mate in an elaborate display of his aigrettes, the long feathers that grow during breeding season. Once the male finds a mate, both birds work to complete the nest, but the male does most of the foraging for building materials. This Egret flew to a marshy area near the rookery trees and selected a small twiggy piece of vegetation instead of a large stick or small branch. I couldn’t track which nest he returned to so I’m not sure if he used this twig for support or decor.
Hi Carol, disregard my forwarded email to you. It was meant for my wife. Outstanding photo as usual.
Jim C.