Every December I dream of decorated trees. If you think I am talking about Christmas trees, however, you are wrong. I dream of palm tree tops filled with Great Blue Herons.
You see, each winter the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands in Viera, Florida is the backdrop for a Great Blue Heron Love Story.
RICH GRISSOM MEMORIAL WETLANDS LOCATION
Before we delve into the Great Blue Heron Love Story though, let’s take a minute to learn about Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands.
Viera Wetlands is located on Florida’s east coast in Central Florida and only 2.5 miles west off I 95 at the Wickham Road exit. One of the great things about this wetland is that it is so easy to find and such a short drive from a major interstate.
ABOUT VIERA WETLANDS
Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands, (Viera Wetlands), is a 200 acre man made wetland in Central Florida, built in 2007, around a central lake with 4 different cells. It is located by the flood plains of the St. Johns River and accessed by a 2.8 mile loop trail along with intersecting trails.
The trails are open to pedestrians and bicycles and bring you mere feet from amazing wildlife and birding action.
Note: This was once a drivable wetland that has now been closed to driving due to erosion and bad visitor behavior.
Hours: The Wetlands are open from sunrise to sunset every day. The Wetlands, however, do close to the public at times for maintenance or weather related issues so always call prior to visiting.
Costs: The wetlands are free.
Pets: No dogs are allowed.
Contact Info: Rich Grissom Memorial Wetlands
Rich Grissom Wetland’s Wildlife
Visitors to Viera Wetlands are likely to encounter a large variety of birds, especially wading birds. Along with wading birds, a variety of raptors and waterfowl make the wetlands home.
Birds are not the only wildlife at Viera Wetlands though, as the ponds are also home to turtles, alligators, snakes and otter making Viera is a great place to visit any time of year. Mornings and evenings are the best times to see the most wildlife.
For the best wildlife sightings, however, the winter and spring months are prime times. During these months, wading birds, cranes and raptors turn shrubs and trees into a raucous rookery that is a delight to see and photograph.
The only time I do not suggest visiting Viera Wetlands is during the middle of the day during the summer months when all wildlife activity is sparse.
Now let’s go see a great blue heron love story in action.
GREAT BLUE HERONS OF VIERA WETLAND
Great Blue Herons choose Viera Wetlands as their annual nesting site due to the abundance of food along with one of their favorite nesting sites; palm trees. In fact, the Great Blue Herons are one of the first birds to decorate the trees of Viera Wetlands although many other birds will soon join them.
Update– Many palm trees have died since this post was first written which has resulted in a decline in the number of great blue herons nesting at Viera in recent years.
Viera is an amazing place to photograph all the various stages of the Great Blue Heron love story as I am about the show you.
Great Blue Heron Courtship Begins
At Viera Wetlands, the heron courtship begins once the first males arrive and stake claims to prime palm tree tops around Viera’s ponds. The herons seem to prefer palm trees that are in the ponds for safety from predators coupled with easy access to fish.
Note: In rookeries comprised of other trees, Great Blue Herons will nest at the top of trees while other birds will nest lower in the trees.
Male Heron Stretches to Attract Females
After the male great blue heron has picked a palm tree top for a potential nest site, he will begin stretching his neck in a stretch display to attract females. During this neck stretch he will bristle his feathers and extend his neck to an almost vertical position as seen below.
Male Herons Play Hard to Get
In ‘Heron Love” it appears the great blue heron male is the one to play hard to get. Responding to the male stretch, a female heron arrives at the nest but may be initially rebuffed by the male. Oh what I could add here but won’t.
Also during this stretch phase while the herons are sizing each other up, they can be seen chasing each other around the nest site and even pushing the other one off the tree top.
All this frantic activity makes this a great time to photograph herons fights. Even though the picture below appears very static these heron fights are very fast and photographed at 1/2000 of a sec to avoid any motion blur.
Heron Love At Last
After several days of disagreements, the male begins to accept the female and love fills the air. It is at this stage of courtship that the great blue herons begin to engage in bill clapping which I call “Heron Kissing.”
Yes, I know, I am straying from the scientific names but this is after all a “Great Blue Heron Love Story.”
By the way, this part of the courtship is my favorite part of their mating behavior. Not only is it amazing to witness but the beautiful shapes that occur during this phase create beautiful images. For example, take a look at these herons with beaks touching and wings extended.
Even after bill clapping begins, the acceptance of the female by the male is not finalized until he brings her twigs for the nest.
Heron Nest Building
The male Great Blue Heron now begins to gather nesting material and for many days can be seen flying back and forth to the nest. This is a great time to practice flight shots as the herons will leave and come back to the same spot over and over again during the day.
Heading Out
Returning to the Nest
The female will inspect the nesting material and begin to assimilate it into the nest.
Great Blue Herons Mating
Once nest building is substantially complete, the actual mating begins. At this stage, it is common to observe a male fly into the nest with nesting material and mate with the female in a matter of a minute or less. As a photographer, anticipating this action is key to capturing the mating of the herons.
VIERA WETLANDS FINAL THOUGHTS
Every stage of Great Blue Heron courtship is an exhilarating experience to witness in person. As a photographer, their courtship is an incredible opportunity to capture stunning images. I am not a bird photographer per se but check out my bird gallery of blue herons to see what is possible at Viera.
As great as the great blue heron courtship is, don’t miss the opportunity to also photograph all the other wading birds, raptors, and waterfowl that mate and winter in this Wetland.
Lastly, I only dealt with the courtship phase of the Great Blue Herons but would be remiss if I did not mention that Viera is also a great place to watch the great blue heron chicks growing up.
To learn about other Florida birdings destinations please read be sure to read: Bird Photography at St. Augustine Alligator Farm, A Feathered Route, and Best Places for Bird Photography at Merritt Island.
To that end, I wish everyone a wonderful time at Viera and hope you check back for updates on other photo destinations.
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They are just beautiful. They are very passionate. I found your history locking for info about these birds when they fall in love. Thank you so much for sharing it.