March 29, 2012 at 9:25 am
Great blue herons started arriving back in Maine over two weeks ago. The first report I received was of two birds seen near a breeding colony in Brunswick on Monday, March 12th. Despite these early arrivals, most of the state's birds don't initiate nesting until mid-April, and some as late as mid-May. In New York, it appears the great blue heron nesting season begins a bit earlier. A live webcam on a nesting pair of great blue herons at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology just documented that the female laid her first egg last night!