The Heron

I spot it before it sees me. The statuesque bird stares intently into the freshwater at the edge of the lake. Long legs mean the head is elevated to a perfect vantage point from which to keep watch for fish. When it flies, it rises gracefully. Legs trail behind, neck tucks in, creating a modern pterodactyl as it disappears from sight. The grey heron. Standing at up to one metre high, the heron is the tallest bird in the UK.

Seen in the UK all year round, herons are at home both in town and countryside. Popular hunting spots include canals, rivers, and lakes. Even garden fishponds. There are ways to deter herons from visiting gardens, although this might also keep other wildlife away. And in Great Britain, the heron is protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, with fines or prison sentences possible for anyone killing or attempting to kill one. They are also protected under the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985.

Nesting

Herons nest high in trees. Several pairs will often group together, creating a heronry. Heronries have been known to number up to 40 nests, each built using a fairly haphazard arrangement of twigs. Some heronries have been around for decades. Since 1928 the Heronries Census has monitored UK heronries.

Around 3-4 eggs are laid per pair, usually sometime in March. Eggs are incubated by both the male, and female bird. The young hatch a month later, and are fed by both parents, who provide regurgitated fish for them. The young birds fledge almost two months after this, meaning they usually leave the nest in June or July.

Life

Herons live up to five years in the wild, although the oldest recorded heron was 23 years old when it died.

The heron’s main food is fish, which they try to swallow head first, to avoid scales catching in their throats on the way down the neck. Herons supplement their diet with ducklings, small mammals, and amphibians.

Outside nesting season, the heron is a solitary bird, roosting in trees overnight. They are non-migratory, and can be seen across the UK all year round.

The Future

Herons suffer when cold winters lead to frozen waters. The UK is around 1 degree Celsius warmer today than it was in the 1950s. While this may not sound much, it has led to warmer winters (on average), meaning fewer instances of waters freezing over.

As with other wildlife, herons are affected through loss of habitat because of construction of human developments. Litter and polluting also poses a problem, harming not only the birds, but their food supplies.

Nevertheless, the number of breeding herons in the UK and mainland Europe has been increasing steadily over the last few years. There are an estimated 13,000 nesting birds in the UK, and almost 400,000 pairs in mainland Europe.