During a quick visit to Umstead Park in Raleigh this week, I happened to catch a quick photo of this Great Blue Heron gliding across the water.
The morning sun set the lake aglow with colors as the light reflected off of the trees along the shoreline into the water below.
It was neat to stand there in this moment taking it all in 🙂

Great Blue Herons are a familiar bird to most folks here in North Carolina. From marshes, swamps, lakes, ponds and rivers, pretty much anywhere you find water, the odds are good you’ll likely spot a Great Blue Heron hunting there.
Although they are a year round resident of the Tarheel state, there are populations of these beauties that migrate south to warmer climates during the winter.
We usually see them flying short distances between the stumps and trees, yet these birds are impressive long distance travelers too!
Last year, researchers tracked a Geo-tagged female Heron (named Harper) from Canada to Florida between October 4th and October 6th. Her epic flight path (flying non-stop!) over the Atlantic coastline took just 38 hours to complete.
Just incredible 🙂

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the fabulous full frame @canonusa
#5Ds