Stanley Park heron cam
It is not just bird enthusiasts from all over the world who will be better able to view the herons as they go through life’s daily struggles and pleasures — like courting, birthing and protecting their turf — but also scientists who study the big birds; they, too, will now have a, well, a bird’s-eye view of the herons as they behave in their natural habitat.
The new high-definition camera, which cost $4,900, will be broadcasting live footage of the heron colony, complete with multiple angles you can control from your home, all day and night, every day and night.
On its website, linked above, Vancouver Parks and Recreation claims there is no better “nature show” in Vancouver and boasts the “heron cam provides the ultimate close-up view of one of North America’s largest urban colonies of Pacific Great Blue Herons, a species at risk.”
Blue Heron colony
The colony, located behind the Parks Board offices in the park, boasts some 100 active nests and in 2015 produced 175 fledgling herons.
“When the first chicks hatch in early April,” the website says. “Watch both parents feed and protect their young from eagle and raccoon attacks. It’s the best nature show in town! ”
CBC News in Canada reports one-third of the world’s Pacific Blue Herons, designated an endangered species, live in the Stanley Park colony and the surrounding area of the Salish Sea.
Maria Egerton is with the Stanley Park Ecology Society and told the CBC about some of the things viewers will be able to see with the new camera.
“We have 13 different angles we can work with as well as zoomed-in and zoomed-out viewscapes where we can see the whole colony,” Egerton said.
“They do this beak-wrestling thing where they grab each other’s beaks and pull back and forth and they squawk at each other and the males defend their nests,” she added. “There’s a lot of fun courtship behavior to see.”
