BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 21, 2024
The green heron is not as big as some other heron species, such as the great blue seen commonly in Maine’s marshes. This bird is about the size of a crow, mallard duck or herring gull. It lives near lakes, ponds, marshes, swamps and streams, but is most often found near small ponds. It builds its nests — generally a platform of sticks with other material added — in a variety of places including willow thickets, mangroves, dry woods and open marshes, usually from 5 to 30 feet off the ground, often near the water. It generally is a more southern species but has been creeping ever northward as temperatures warm with climate change.