Green Heron hunting

I was watching a Green Heron hunting in the Allen Brothers marsh in Bellows Falls. It would stand motionless for minutes at a time and then suddenly stretch its neck forward, flap its wings and come up with a small fish in its beak.  It caught two fish during the twenty minutes I was there.

Stalking slowly on the thick vegetation in the shallow water it caught another fish.

 

The fish slid down the hatch....

It's been reported that sometimes Green Herons use bait to lure fish. They may drop a worm  or insect into the water and wait for hungry fish to swarm to the object and then pounce on them with their beak. BNA Online: "One bird dug earthworms from mud and used them as bait, and twice birds broke pieces of stick to make bait, an example of tool-making." Authors: Davis, Jr., W. E., and J. A. Kushlan

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