{"id":141865,"date":"2025-03-21T04:29:06","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T09:29:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=141865"},"modified":"2025-03-21T04:29:15","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T09:29:15","slug":"great-blue-heron-at-arkansas-river-valley-nature-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/03\/21\/great-blue-heron-at-arkansas-river-valley-nature-center\/","title":{"rendered":"Great Blue Heron At Arkansas River Valley Nature Center"},"content":{"rendered":"

I photographed this Great Blue Heron in low light last week at the Arkansas River Valley Nature Center<\/span><\/a> in Arkansas. The heron and its reflection caught my eye.<\/p>\n

\"GreatGreat Blue Heron at Wells Lake \u2013 Canon R7, handheld, f8, 1\/250, ISO 1600, Canon EF 100-400mm II at 371mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

It was only my second trip to this nature center, but I\u2019m already getting to know the area well. The hickory and oak trees surrounding the lake and nature center were just starting to leaf out. Soon, they\u2019ll be lush and vibrant.<\/p>\n

I saw at least three Great Blue Herons on Wells Lake and wondered where they nest at the nature center. It should already be nesting time for these herons.<\/p>\n

I’ve been able to see and photograph Great Blue Herons in many types of habitat over the years, from swamps to wetlands, the shore of the Gulf of Mexico<\/span><\/a>, the Everglades, sloughs, coastal saltwater marshes, desert oases, and high alpine streams.<\/p>\n

In addition, I’ve also seen them hunting on sage-covered desert mountain foothills and nesting on a rocky protrusion in the Great Salt Lake.<\/p>\n

I consider myself fortunate in that respect because these herons are one of my favorite birds to have in my viewfinder.<\/p>\n

Walking the trails at the Arkansas River Valley Nature Center gives me different views of the area around Wells Lake and the wildlife that live there, including these large, fascinating wading birds.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Great Blue Heron photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I photographed this Great Blue Heron in low light last week at the Arkansas River Valley Nature Center. The heron and its reflection caught my eye.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":141861,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13950,16308,27,166,13951],"tags":[4004,4117,3987,627,626,5178,156,16316,958,313,16309,373],"class_list":["post-141865","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arkansas","category-arkansas-river-valley-nature-center","category-avian","category-great-blue-herons","category-sebastian-county","tag-adult","tag-ardea-herodias","tag-great-blue-heron","tag-heron","tag-herons","tag-lake","tag-low-light-2","tag-nature-center","tag-reflections","tag-wading-birds","tag-wells-lake","tag-winter"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/great-blue-heron-wells-lake-mia-mcpherson-7862.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-AU9","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":142848,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/04\/13\/great-blue-heron-on-the-arkansas-river\/","url_meta":{"origin":141865,"position":0},"title":"Great 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