The Great Blue Heron

One our way south from Snohomish to Cottage Grove, we spied signs for an interesting wildlife reserve. We decided to stop on our way back home. As usual, we managed to arrive near midday - not the best time for birds. But it was overcast and raining off and on, so we were hopeful.

One of the more common residents is the great blue heron. For the first time, we found a trove of herons during the beginning of mating season. As a result, all the guys are decked out in their finest breeding plumage.

What attracted us to this particular spot was that there is a self-driving tour open in the winter. This sounded perfect. If there was no one to see, it'd be a quick in and out. If there were wonders to behold, we could do it from the dry comfort of our car.

Little did we realize that we'd get to see herons with their shifted colors and poofy little white top knot designed to be a Class A babe magnet.

With all the feathers they produce to generate this "come hither" look, they have a much softer, fuzzier appearance.

Underneath there is a darker rust color that goes with the darkening along the neck. That feather on the top is a show stopper though. I'm guessing that is what the chicks really dig.

In this season of "everything is turned up to 11" as mating takes off, there was much to see. I have many more photos to share. Stay tuned.