Great Blue Heron: how to recognise it
A bird of Europe, North America and South America. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © Dan Roach · CC BY-NC · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Ardea herodias
- Family
- Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns
- Size
- About 97–137 cm
- Habitat
- Shores of lakes, rivers, marshes and coasts
- Found in
- Europe, North America and South America
The key marks
A huge blue-grey heron with a black stripe over the eye, shaggy plumes on the chest and a dagger-like yellowish bill. In flight it folds its neck into an S.
Voice
A deep, harsh “fraank” when flushed.
Good to know
It can stand motionless for many minutes, then strike so fast that it spears fish, frogs and even small rodents.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in shores of lakes, rivers, marshes and coasts. It is especially common in the United States, Florida, Texas and Canada. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.