Drama at the pond

The drizzle took a break for a bit yesterday, and I stepped out to stretch my legs.

There were plenty of critters about, but nobody wanted to sit still for me until I made it to the pond, where Ol’ Blue was intent upon rustling up some lunch.

Suddenly, a second Great Blue Heron drifted in, and I thought “well this will be a great photo op,” but for reasons known only to him, he decided to land right next to the first one, and they had a quick and agitated conversation, perhaps about scaring fish away or the optimal heron density on a pond of this size, before one flew right off again. 

Actually, I don’t really know which one, or even if either one, might be the same one I donned Ol’ Blue while photographing few days ago, and I also don’t know, of course, what they actually discussed. Perhaps it’s a long standing feud between them about some sweet mate or nesting site they both wanted.

In other news, there were only 7 (seven) goslings on the pond. I walked around twice, so I’m pretty sure about that. Let us hope that the family with the triplets merely decided that they had outgrown the pond, headed back down to the river, and one of the octet tagged along. That’s how nature works, right?

 https://www.flickr.com/photos/andrewdressel/albums/72157713703616688

Lastly, there’s a surprise for readers of today’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinel print edition that I cannot find online anywhere.