Olympia’s Great Blue Heron
Olympia’s Great Blue Heron colony member scoping out the local buffet of Capitol Lake
The Great Blue Heron colony of Olympia is getting ready for another breeding season thanks to a non-profit, Olympia Coalition for Ecosystems Preservation, and legislative actions like Olympia’s Critical Areas Ordinance.
The Herons protected habitat is located at the end of Dickinson Avenue NW in West Bay Woods, just over a mile from the Capitol Lake (5th Ave.) Dam. The Herons were not the only Aves visiting the lake that day. A dozen or so ducks like Mallards and Common Mergansers were “duck diving” for their entrée’s.
The Capitol Lake Dam provides a great fishing, breeding, and food gathering opportunity for local birds. Birds of prey like Bald Eagles and Hawks certainly enjoy the salmon runs of fall. Perching birds have plenty of space on the many trees of the surrounding area. The song birds perform their orchestras on the lakeshore for the jogging by passers. Gulls and other seabirds do their circular flight patterns overhead as they call out their menu requests. This location has appeal to more than just the humans. The 5th Avenue Dam provides a lake environment for the surrounding creatures, but was converting the original tidelands into a lake in the creature’s best interest or the people’s?
Date: 4/5/16
Temperature: 61
Wind: Calm
Humidity: 60%
Dew Point: 47
Pressure: 30.05
UV Index: 3, moderate
