Great Blue Heron at Sunset, Florida Poster

"Great Blue Heron at Sunset, Money Bayou Beach, Port St. Joe, Florida" by Catherine Sherman. The great blue heron (Ardea herodias) is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America, as well as the Caribbean and the Galápagos Islands. It is the largest North American heron and, among all extant herons, it is surpassed only by the goliath heron (Ardea goliath) and the white-bellied heron (Ardea insignis). It has head-to-tail length of 91–137 cm (36–54 in), a wingspan of 167–201 cm (66–79 in), a height of 115–138 cm (45–54 in), and a weight of 1.82–3.6 kg (4.0–7.9 lb) At sunset, I was photographing shore birds at Money Bayou where it empties onto Money Bayou Beach on the Panhandle of Florida, when this Great Blue Heron seemed to drop out of the sky right next to me. He stood there in the rosy light until he saw me taking his photograph, and then he flew off. The great blue heron is the largest North American heron (Ardea herodias). It's a wading bird found near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America as well as the Caribbean Sea and the Galapagos Islands. The Great Blue Heron has a head-to-tail length of 36–54 inches (91–137 cm), a wingspan of 66–79 inches (167–201 cm), a height of 45–54 inches (115–138 cm), and a weight of 4.0–7.9 pounds (1.82–3.6 kg).