Just the Kids
It's Egret baby season again! Starting in April, Snowy Egrets, Great Egrets and Black-Crowned Night Heron begin building nests in the Baylands wildlife sanctuary on San Francisco Bay. What few palm trees and eucalyptus are available become crowded like a New York City apartment building as birds pack in their nests near one of the prime fishing spots in the area.
Eggs are laid and young birds begin to emerge: first, the Night Herons, followed in a few weeks by the first round of Snowy Egrets. The babies continue to hatch into the summer months and the earlier-born fledglings test their wings for the first flight.
As summer winds down, the birds quietly disappear from the area, seeking out better hunting grounds and possibly a little peace and quiet, but they are guaranteed to return again next spring.
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