When I was a youth, we were feeding the ducks at a pond. One of these herons was there. Never having seen one before, we tossed it some bread. The heron picked up the bread and put it in the water. Using the bread as bait, it caught six fish, the sixth being too big for it to swallow. It readjusted the bread between every fish to keep it in just the right spot.
I saw one do that with a big beef rib it took from the garbage. It ran the bone with some meat on it to the water and dropped it in and then waited watching over it. These birds are very clever.
what sticks out to me in the way the bird eats is how similar it is to reptiles/snakes. like when a pelican swallows a duck in one gulp, it's not so obvious b/c its beak is gigantic. and raptors pick pieces off their prey. but this little guy looked like it had to disengage his jaw to get that gopher(?) into its gullet.
The first time I saw a heron I was a child. I was out in the woods exploring a stream and stumbled upon a blue heron. It was taller than I was. I didn't even know they existed at the time, so it was a surprise to see such a large bird up close.
Spectacular! National Geo just gets its money shot and goes home. Jim stays the course. Not sure I would want to be a bloated black-crowned night-heron, but I like watching one get there. This species and the yellow-crowned are so interesting in their patient, deliberate ways.
I remember a couple years ago I saw one grab a beef rib from the garbage and run it to the water and it dropped it for bait. It then watched it presumably waiting for a crawdad or small fish. I’ve been a fan of them ever since.
These Black-Crowned Night Herons are very smart birds. You see videos of them baiting and catching fish. This was some excellent videography. It was very impressive how you stayed with the bird, and kept focus, no matter where it went.
Thanks. I saw one once take a rib bone with some meat on it out of the garbage and run it too a nearby pond and drop it in the water. It then waited over it. I assume it was using that as bait for crayfish or fish. I agree that they are surprisingly smart.
You got to admire the patience of the bird. Rip gopher. It's not easy out there, but in your own way you're helping preserve our wonderful ecosystem by keeping these birds and others fed b
The way this bird hunts on the ground, it's like watching a big cat hunt its prey. The stealth and the patience, I'm amazed that this is a bird doing all of this. What a vicious predator.
Yeah I agree and the stakes are high. If they miss too many chances, they may not survive. I’ve seen this bird for at least 2 years and it is real bulky and strong so I think it takes advantage of its opportunities.
Birds are dinosaurs. Just imagine how smart T rex and other predatory dinosaurs really were. They were likely as smart as ravens and herons and likely could use tactics such as baiting prey.
Wow. Impressive that it could swallow that critter whole like that. Also impressive to get the whole thing on camera considering the bird was flying around. Good job.
Me: Dinosaurs are extinct A Rodent: Have you seen this thing? Seriously though, it always impresses me how they can keep their heads entirely motionless whilst the rest of the body moves!
HE NEVER KNEW WHAT HIT HIM, WOW. BUT DAT BIRD'S MEAT IS TUFF OR MAYBE THE PERSON DAT COOKED DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THEY WERE DOIN, IT WAS LIKE CHEWIN A BASEBALL MITT. ( 3 )
Yeah I agree. I probably have over a hundred videos of herons eating gophers and Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons nearly always use their dagger like bill. This night heron probably just doesn’t have enough weight to pull it off. They are probably a third of the weight of a great blue just throwing out a wild guesstimate.
Wow, I had no idea you are local. I pass by that area all the time through the San Gabriel River Bike Path. This area must've been next to El Dorado Park camping grounds.
Yeah this bird does frequent there. This video was taken in Area 3 which is north of Wardlow and very near the parking lot and the bike trail. I was actually running on the bike trail past there this morning about 4:30 am.
I had the impression that it actually stabbed this gopher. In every other capture I’ve seen with this heron, it grabbed the gopher. I think it has a very sharp bill but I suspect it was trying to grab it but inadvertently speared it. Many times the gopher is feeding on plants from its burrow pulling the plants down by their roots. The herons can break right through this shallow soil and snatch them right out of their burrow. I’ve watched great blue herons do this hundred(s) of times but obviously this bird is much smaller so it is not as easy for it to do that. It was just my impression so I’m not sure. I did edit out some of the gopher struggle so it took about twice as long in real life to subdue that gopher.
The footage you got was amaaaazing, thanks for sharing. It takes a lot of patience and focus to get that much on film... I'm in NorCal, and I vist McNears Beach several times a week. It's my second home ❤ There are several different species of Herons and Egrets, as well as geese and ducks. A wonderful variety Last Fall, though, I spotted one I'd never seen before. The (young) park rangers weren't even sure what it was. It was standing absolutely still at water's edge, like a statue I looked it up and I'm 99% sure it was a Night Heron. I guess up here they're a pretty rare sight, because as their name suggests, they only appear at dusk...?
Yeah it seems to like some long grass but not too much. On the other section of the park, I see them hunting on short grass (hunting bugs) I haven’t seen this particular heron for a month or so but I’ll keep looking.
Es ist immer wieder erstaunlich, wie groß die Brocken sind, die ein Vogel als Ganzes verschlucken kann. Man mag sich kaum vorstellen, daß solche Mengen auf einmal durch einen Schnabel passen.
Thanks. Danke schoen. My brother in law showed the video at a large party. The women screamed when the gopher was swallowed. I would have thought they would scream at the capture or choking but no, only at the swallowing.
That's usually what I do when I go to an all-you-can-eat lunch buffet - I load up my first plate with WAY too much food... and usually regret it an hour later.
What did it do in the initial strike to incapacitate the gopher? Does it shake the prey in order to break its neck? It looks like it couldn't suffocate it. Nice catch by the way (of the heron's behaviour).
I think in this case this bird inadvertently pierced the gopher in the throat. It’s hard to see and I’m not sure but I did look at it multiple times and slowed way down. That is why I think the gopher was wiggling so much at the beginning. The bird then grabbed it by the neck and squeezed and shook it until it could be eaten.
There was a tree near to where I used to live and these guys roosted there. The white washed cars that parked under that tree were basically totaled IMO.
Yeah I really like this bird. I remember being impressed by the muscles and beefyness in this bird but honestly I avoided filming it because of its missing toes. Still I found myself always seeing it because it was out there hunting gophers. The other night herons were mostly eating bugs around the trash bins. It is ironic to me that the only night heron in the park that I can identify due to its missing toes is the one that I have been successful in videoing it catching gophers. I think it is a heron that really honed its hunting skills.
