The bird had deep blue feathers and it was beautiful. Since I got used to seeing them all over the city, they have kind of lost their initial wow-actor, but they are still special for me.
These birds are very common in the Netherlands. You can find them all over the region, particularly near water sources. I tend to see them by the canals and ponds of Amsterdam.
The Great Blue Heron uses the water sources to drink from and find their food. They mostly eat small fish or whatever is most available at the time. On one occasion, I saw a bird fighting for pond space against a duck. It was very amusing; they kept quacking and squawking at each other.
There are not many predators in the Netherlands, but foxes or cats could maim a Great Blue Heron. Other birds can be very territorial in their areas while feeding or hunting, so that could also be potentially dangerous for a heron. Other than natural dangers, the risks posed by climate change could seriously hurt the species. If the temperatures dip too low, they could be in trouble. Loss of feeding areas due to lack of rain, the dying off of certain food sources or human interference in their habitats or with water sources could endanger the species. As of now, I do not think we have to worry about the Great Blue Herons of the Netherlands, but we should keep fighting climate change so that we never have to worry about them or any other animal or part of nature.
