Country diary: The messy chaos of nesting herons | Mary Montague

Stranmillis University College, Belfast: There’s a fuss going on high up in the trees, as these early breeders have already got going with this year’s brood A robin is singing. Moonlight gleams through the trees. These woods are home to a breeding colony of grey herons and, until recently, their incessant yells were part of the dawn chorus. Today, the quietness of an established heron nest high in a beech tree is good news. Herons share parental care and one of the pair is up there – right on...

By Mary Montague