Pictures From A Very Strange Day - Nov 10, 2005

[TerriB]

Originally Posted by Lady Tarheel

...They can "uncoil" that long neck in a heartbeat...
Maggie

Maggie, thanks for the heads up (so to speak)
We have a fair number of great blue herons here. A neighbor put in a small koi pond and thought cats were taking her fish till we saw a great blue on her garage roof checking the selection!

[TAWhatley]

Maggie's caution is well warranted. There has been at least one rescuer/rehabber killed by getting stabbed through the eye into the brain. I know that many of us get carried away at times in our passion to help our beloved birds and animals, but sometimes you really need to stop and think about what you are doing and how you are going about it.

Some of the birds like the big herons and pelicans can be way more than one person can safely handle, and that's especially true if the rescuer is inexperienced. I'd like to think I know what I'm doing, but I've still had the blue blazes beat out of me by a pair of Egyptian Geese and a single Canada Goose entangled in fishing line. Truly, you can't imagine how much hurt these birds can put on you. One with a lethal beak like a large heron would make me pause for the cause, and I am ever so careful even with the smallest raptors .. firstly, I don't know anything about them really, and secondly, those beaks and talons make me sit right up and take notice.

Heck, even Mr. Nibbles has talons and wings that are formidible, and his beak ain't too shabby either.

So .. moral of the story .. let's all be careful out there and not try to take on more than we can safely do.

Terry