At the local heron rookery the chicks are growing at a phenomenal rate. How three or four chicks manage to stay in their nests without pushing their siblings out is a mystery to me.

It is increasingly difficult to approach the rookery through the tall grasses. Much of the grass is now five feet tall. All of it is hip high. We have had lots of rain during the past week here in southeastern Wisconsin, so these wetlands are living up to their name. Because of terrific thunderstorms and high winds, I’m pretty sure that at least one of the nests was destroyed.

Here are three of the photos taken this past week. As you can see, the chicks are starting to look like adults with bad hair.

The following image of a solitary adult keeping watch over the nest poses a question. I watched this bird for an hour, but I never spotted a chick in the nest. In the other fifteen to twenty nests that I could see there were lots of chicks clearly visible. I’m wondering if the chick or chicks fell out of this nest but the adult keeps watch nonetheless.