In 2018, I noticed adult Green Herons visiting our dock and the disused and overgrown boat basin on our property at Sealevel, NC. This was in April and May of 2018.

At the time, I didn't realize that the adults were actually nesting in the thicket of sweet bay and Virginia creeper overhanging the boat basin. This fact didn't come to my attention until I started seeing juvenile/immature Green Herons perching on the shrubs and an old snag at the boat basin. Once I saw them, I began observing the site more closely.

There were five chicks in this early, first nest attempt and I believe they hatched sometime around May 28, 2018. All five herons fledged and dispersed by the end of June. They did, however, stay in the area and I often saw them throughout the summer perching on docks near mine. Three of the young really seemed to stay together and always perched together in the evenings. Sometimes, one or two more of their siblings would join them, but those three really stayed together--at least within sight of each other.

I discovered a second nest later that summer. I believe the chicks hatched sometime around June 26, 2018. That nest produced three chicks and one egg didn't hatch. By July 18, only two chicks remained. We'd had a tropical storm in the interval and I believe the third chick was lost during that storm.

By July 24, the two chicks from the second nest were making experimental flights and preparing to disperse. One chick stayed quite near for another month, preferring to forage around the original nest site.

The adults and independent juveniles continued to visit Nelson Bay, the surrounding docks, and our disused boat basin quite regularly for the rest of the summer.

I created this project to document the two nest attempts and the behavior I noted in the juveniles. There appears to be very little information anywhere on actual behavior and it was absolutely fascinating to watch the interactions of the juveniles.

There is also an interesting point that I noted and that might be something researchers might want to study in future research.

In these two nest attempts by Green Herons and in other nest attempts I observed of Yellow-crowned Night-Heron on our property in Bladen County, I noted that nest attempts made in late June are far less successful than earlier attempts.

Sealevel - Green Heron
Of the two nest attempts, the first which occurred starting in May was extremely successful and resulted in 5 offspring fledging.

The second attempt which started in June was far less successful. One egg didn't hatch. One chick died in a storm. The two remaining offspring fledged.

Bladen County - Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
2018-2019 I've been watching nest attempts of Yellow-crowned Night-Heron for several years. Initially, there was just one pair of nesting adults. They almost invariably nested in April/May and I grew used to seeing five juveniles fledge from the nest each year.

In 2019, two pair of adults set up nests about 200 yards apart. Both nests were successful. The original nest (and perhaps the original pair?) again had 5 juveniles fledge. The second nest had 4 juveniles fledge. Both nests were set up in the April/May time frame.

In addition, I found three more nest sites within a mile radius. Two within 100 yards of each other in a pine stand at the edge of a swamp run and the third in a pine in the middle of a mixed hardwood swamp in the same general area. Of those, the earlies nests which were started again in the April/May timeframe, all produced 5 young which fledged. Any nests started in June invariably produced only 2 or 3 juveniles that fledged.

In 2019, we also started having issues with mid-summer droughts. The third nest I found in the mixed hardwood swamp area had been started in June and by July, the two surviving young were panting due to heat. By the end of July, I found their bodies below the nest. I believe they perished due to the heat and lack of rain/water.

In 2020-21 the drought continued and there was very little water in the swamp. The three nests that I had found that were not on our property were abandoned. In fact, the third nest where the young had perished of heat in 2019 was actually being used as a roosting/resting place by a Red-shouldered Hawk, who would fly there with some creature in its talons to sit and consume it comfortably on the remnants of the heron nest. I even saw a Great-crested Flycatcher going to the abandoned nest after the hawk, presumably to eat the flies and other bugs that had collected on the remains of whatever the hawk had eaten.

2021 also saw a tragedy with the two Yellow-crowned Night-heron nests on our property. Both nests had 5 juveniles each and were doing very well, having been started in late April/early May. But in June, raccoons found the nests. First, I discovered a puddle of adult feathers on the ground near the nests. The next day, I found puddles of juvenile feathers. Both nests were empty.

In 2022, the night-heron original two nest sites were abandoned. I did find a nest site much further into the swamp, along what would be the 4th run. But that site was started late--in June--and again, I found the bodies of two chicks beneath the nest in early July. We were still having drought conditions (and are still having drought conditions). I do not know what killed the chicks, but their bodies were entire and not eaten (except by the normal scavenger insects, etc) so I do not think it had been found by racoons.

So...the point is that I have noticed a distinct difference in the success rates of nests started early in the season versus those started later. Unfortunately, the Yellow-crowned Night-heron may have moved to other areas with more water, etc, so I do not know if I will get any more opportunities to study them.

The Green Herons at Sealevel have not nested in our disused boat basin in recent years, although we have seen adults periodically visit our dock during the summer months. I am hopeful that they may again nest at the boat basin in the future. If they do, I will record that information.

Posted on October 16, 2022 02:45 PM by amypadgett