The Great Blue Heron Project at University Lake School
May 21st, 2024
For many decades ULS has marked its seasons by the annual departure and return of a flock of Great Blue Herons, whose rookery comprises over 80 nests in our stand of tall oaks. And yet we don’t know nearly enough about them. What are the specific features of this population? How are they organized socially? Why are their nesting sites slowly shifting north and east across our forest? Why have they chosen a site that requires a daily mile shuttling back and forth to Nagawicka and Pine Lakes? And where do they go in the winter?
We perceive a rare opportunity for the right ornithologist, graduate student, or scientist to make use of our rookery site to study this population of herons with unfettered access.
