Final Bird of The Year

Black-crowned Night-Heron

Yesterday we took off in the van for a day of birding at Baskett Slough NWR.  It is a favorite way of ours to bird in bad weather.  We turn on the furnace and enjoy the warmth and comfort of the seats as we locate and photograph birds. We were parked enjoying our lunch at the Morgan Lake parking lot, when a man pulled up in a pickup and walked over to talk with us.  It was Ken Chamberlain, a well-known and experience birder.  He recognized our van. As we chatted about birds, he mentioned that he had found the rare, Black-crowned Night-Heron at the Sheridan South Side Park. We had looked for it a couple of weeks ago but had failed to find it.  He explained exactly where he had found it, so we said our goodbyes and traveled on to Sheridan. Arriving at the first pond, we searched the water line on the far side and grassy banks to no avail. I asked Jeanette for a cup of coffee. She went back to the stove to boil water and make coffee and asked ME to find a photo so she would know what we were looking for.  While I was looking for an image of the Back-crowned Night-Heron, she brought up my coffee, picked-up her binoculars and exclaimed, "there it is".  With her instructions, I proceeded to locate it and take some photos. It's a juvenile, so not the distinct black and white coloring that we are familiar with from our years in Southern California and Arizona. We were thrilled to have our last bird of the year to be this special, Black-crowned Night Heron.