Dirty Bird
Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida
Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida
Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida Great Blue Heron - St. Petersburg, Florida

This image sequence of a great blue heron bathing was photographed in Saint Petersburg, FL on June 26, 2001 between 3:15 and 3:30 PM. The white residue on the surface of the water near the bird is feather dander being washed off during the process. Bathing typically starts out with a quiet soak and progresses to more vigorous washing activities. A hearty shake marks the end of the bath which is followed by a thorough grooming.

The images were recorded using an Olympus C-2100 Ultra Zoom digital camera in aperture priority mode at ISO 100. The brightest part of the bird was spot metered to avoid overexposure in the bright sunny conditions. Aperture was set to 6.3 with shutter speeds ranging from 1/250 to 1/650.

Home