This is a long video but well worth watching if you want to see how a Great Blue Heron forages. See how it repeatedly stabs a large prey item to kill it, and note how it tries to counter the danger from the venomous pectoral spines of the catfish. If a fish like that erects its spines, and they stay erect, they can potentially pierce the esophagus of a heron or other fish-eating bird.

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Gary Shugart <gshugart at ups.edu>
> Date: December 3, 2009 10:15:58 AM PST
> To: <dennispaulson at comcast.net>
> Subject: GBH breaking spines off catfish
>
> A followup to the cormorant and catfish, I was looking for a video of a heron strike to characterize the head/neck movement and ran across this vodep. A bit long but in the second half the bird is working on the pectoral spines before swallowing a catfish.
>
> http://www.mikephoto.com/The+Great+Blue+Heron+Bonanza.aspx
>
>

-----
Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net



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