This is Bird Note.

The Heron, you're most likely to see in North America, is the tall, great blue Heron.

But this stately bird has a much smaller and more secretive relative, the green Heron.

This chunky, short-legged Heron is about a foot and a half long,

maybe about a third of the size of its larger cousin,

deep forest green color with a chestnut-colored neck.

The green Heron forages for fish in small amphibians on the banks of small bodies of fresh water,

using its plumage to camouflage itself amid the trees and shrubs.

It perches body horizontal and stretched forward over the water still as a statue,

waiting for small fish to come close.

Now, here's the really cool part.

This Heron sometimes uses bait to lure its prey.

It will break twigs into pieces small enough to make convincing lures

and then cleverly drop them onto the water's surface.

Sometimes instead of a stick, the Heron will use a feather or even a live insect.

Then the bird hunkers down and waits for an unsuspecting fish to swim close.

The great blue Heron may be easier to see,

but be sure to keep an eye out for the small and clever green Heron.

For Birdnought, I'm Michael Stein.