Cornell Lab Great Blue Herons nest cams are the latest cams to join their list of live cams. Beautiful live video of nesting Great Blue Herons is streaming directly from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Sapsucker Woods Pond.

The Great Blue Heron nest is in a large white-oak snag outside the office of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology They have nested in this same snag for the last four years.

The herons returned to the nest in mid-March and soon began courting: bringing twigs, standing side by side in the nest, clattering their bills, and nipping at each other. To get good views of these large birds, The Cornell Lab has installed two cameras that stream simultaneously, one from above the nest and the other at nest level. The lower camera can record even in dark conditions and streams all night long.

Please make sure to include the Cornell Lab logo in any screen captures that are posted....Thank you!!

2013 links for the cams:

Cam #1--- http://www.livestream.com/cornellherons

Cam #2--- http://www.livestream.com/cornellherons2



2012 Images:

The following two images are courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology

The view from the cam above the nest



A very different view from the nest level cam




2012 Status update: The female laid her first egg on March 28, her second on March 30, and her third on April 1. The fourth egg was laid on April 3rd...AND the fifth egg was laid on April 6th!!

There were two hatches on April 27th, one on April 28th and one on April 30th...the last and 5th hatch was on May 2nd!! .

The following information is all courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.


ABOUT THIS PAIR OF GREAT BLUE HERONS:

This Great Blue Heron nest is in a large, dead white oak in the middle of Sapsucker Woods pond, right outside the Cornell Lab's Johnson Center for Birds and Biodiversity. Herons have nested here since summer 2009, hatching and fledging four young each year and raising them on a steady diet of fish and frogs. Though neither bird is banded, you can identify the male by the absence of a hallux (the rear-facing toe) on his right foot and by his nuptial plume. Adult herons can be up to 4.5 feet tall, with a wingspan up to 6 feet. Despite their large size, they typically only weigh around 5 pounds.

Herons usually lay 2-4 eggs and share incubation duties for 25-30 days. Incubation begins with the first egg, and the young hatch asynchronously (not at the same time) over 2-5 days. After hatching, it'll take 7-8 weeks before they fly from the nest for the first time.

About the Nest

In 2009, the herons brought in the first few twigs that would become the first known Great Blue Heron nest in the history of Sapsucker Woods. Early in the spring of 2012 we installed two cameras to bring the hidden world of their nesting habits into full view. The nest itself is nearly four feet across and a foot deep, and wraps almost entirely around the trunk of the tree. The birds have slowly built up the nest over the last three years.

About Sapsucker Woods

Sapsucker Woods Sanctuary was named in 1909 by famed bird artist Louis Agassiz Fuertes upon finding the first Yellow-bellied Sapsucker nest in the Ithaca region. About three miles from Cornell's campus, Sapsucker Woods covers 230 acres of forest dominated by red maples, beech, and hickory, including the 10-acre pond where the herons nest.

Great Blue Heron--Ardea herodias. "Henry" the B.C. heron
(thanks to Kay Steer)

The Great Blue Heron's "melodic" voice--wait for the small black box to appear

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Great_Blue_Heron.ogg

(thanks to Kay Steer)

Wonderful information about this beautiful big bird can be found at these three sites:


http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/a ... lue-heron/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Blue_Heron

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Grea ... ifehistory

I caught this view this morning of Mom's lovely long legs when she stood up to have a scratch and roll her three eggs.

Whoo hoo, hi Mary. I have been watching this nest and wondered if it would show up on HWF. I'm so glad to see you here. This is going to be fun to watch, I love those legs
Thanks

Howdy! :hello:

Not the greatest s'cap cause it's getting dark in Ithaca, but here's all 4 eggs. Holy moly...us eagle watchers aren't used to seeing 4 eggs in a nest!

The 4th egg was laid at 8:26PM EDT today.



© Cornell Lab of Ornithology

I'm not sure which parent is in the nest. It's too dark see if there's a missing hallux that identifies Dad.

12:40 Nest time. I have been watching all evening, these birds get up often to stretch and scratch. She doesn't do an egg roll everytime but I did catch this one. I'm guessing it's ma, not sure of the behavior of this pair yet.

Hope you are staying safe in San Antonio Mary, Texas is in our prayers tonight

8:12 My guess is that is pa in the background