Summertime Nature at the Sourland Mountain Preserve.
I’ve seen this bird for the last few days. I thought is was a heron, but anytime I got within 100 feet it would fly to the other side of the pond and I was not fast enough to get an image. Today, I did get some images – but they are significantly cropped, and not all are in great focus. Once I saw its chest in the last images I knew it was an American Bittern. I need to go back with a bigger lens and maybe a tripod to get some better images.
The Reclusive American Bittern at the Sourland Mountain Preserve. Images taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 80-400 mm VRII lens.
Click on the above image to access the images in the slideshow.
Post note — I now think this is an immature Green Heron 24-August-2016.