Lunch at the Lagoon...

[khiemtran]

On my lunch break today, I was lucky to catch this nankeen night heron fishing in the lagoon near my office.



They're not very tall birds, but this one had found a just-submerged sandbar where it could stalk its prey...



Once it's found a good spot, it starts to crouch.



Lower and lower...



And when the fish swim past it strikes. This one just happened to be jumping at the time.



This one probably wished it jumped a little sooner...



How does such a dumpy-looking bird catch such agile fish?



It turns out it has a secret weapon... It might look short, but it can extend in a hurry...

Comments

[puddleshark.livejournal.com]

What a character! I love those shots of it stalking...

And yes, in that last shot, that neck is unexpectedly long.

Wonderful pictures again.

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

Night herons look very furtive most of the time, by they certainly have a determined air about them when there's fish at stake...

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

Both of you got your lunch. :P

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

Yes, although I had a slice of chicken pie, instead of fish.

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

That sounds equally...OK, honestly: That sounds even better than cold, raw fish, uber-fresh though it may be. :P

[lethargic-man.livejournal.com]

Where did that neck come from!?!?

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

It's amazing, isn't it? It is a heron, after all, so I can only guess the neck is folded up and hidden under its coat...

[heleninwales.livejournal.com]

That's a great action sequence and who would have thought that it had a secret extending neck?!

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I was really pleased by the jumping fish next to the heron's eye. That was a complete fluke...

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I saw some of these on FB and some on Flickr, and they're just marvelous. The neck extension is incredible! (Almost creepy) And the way he leans down parallel to the water is very impressive.

Altogether, this is such an impressive photo essay. You could go into classrooms and talk about the Nankeen heron using these.

(Why night heron? Are they more active at night? .... Did I ask this already? I feel like maybe I did and maybe you told me they like crepuscular and overcast days. But maybe I'm just making all that up.)

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

Yes, they are supposed to be nocturnal (although apparently, they still need lunch). I've seen one twice at the lagoon at the middle of the day now and Liem and I have seen them a few times while fishing in the morning. It seems as though they aren't actually that rare around here - just very shy around humans.

[wongkk.livejournal.com]

What an elastic bird! You took some very clever shots. Thanks for the nice selection leading to bird lunch >_< or fish diet!

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

it was great to be able to watch it hunting. They really are amazing creatures to watch.