Friday, after my first day back at work, I decided to go by a swampy area that I know of, where you can always find egrets. I discovered this place back in September, and at the time I thought it was just a roosting area. I hadn’t been there since then because I didn’t go out that way very often, but one road home from my new old job takes me right by there. It’s on a fairly busy road, but there is a wide bridge over the area and plenty of land beside the bridge to walk on (or even sit on).

The majority of the birds I saw there before and on Friday were cattle egrets, but there were a few great egrets also mixed in. It wasn’t until I got settled and got my telephoto lens focused that I began to realize that this was much more than a roosting area. It’s a rookery. There were quite a few nests that were easy to see and plenty more further back into the swamp. There were even still some chicks, like those in the first image in some of the nests. There were also quite a few adults around, some feeding chicks, and many obviously settling in for the night. There were also quite a few nests that appeared to be empty, but about a quarter of the birds there were young immature chicks that were old enough to be out of the nest. The one in the next photo is a prime example.

You can see that they eyes are still bluish grey, like those of the younger chicks, but they have a hint of yellow coming into them. The bill is still black, but all the “fuzzy” look is pretty much gone except maybe on the top of the head. The chicks this age can fly, hunt, and perch, but are still getting fed by the parents some. This one had probably eaten not too long ago, because it kept trying to doze off during the time I was watching it. The younger two, on the other hand, were wide awake and very watchful whenever an adult flew in or out. I’m imagining that they were waiting for the parents to get back with dinner before bedtime.

It was so much fun watching all the activity going on in the area. There were constantly birds coming and going, so next week I may well go back and try to get some of them in flight. I’m still pretty bad at that, so some practice would be great and I can’t think of a better place to do it. Now that I know this is a rookery, I will be back there earlier next year, so I can see some younger chicks, too. This is one of those spots where I can spend hours and not definitely get bored.