Collection
Great blue heron
The great blue heron is the largest heron native to North America. Among all extant herons, it is surpassed in size only by the goliath heron (Ardea goliath) and the white-bellied heron (Ardea insignis). It exhibits a minor degree of sexual dimorphism; males are slightly larger than females, but otherwise the sexes are not easily outwardly distinguishable. It has head-to-tail length of 91–137 cm (36–54 in), a wingspan of 167–201 cm (66–79 in), a height of 115–138 cm (45–54 in), and a weight of 1.82–3.6 kg (4.0–7.9 lb). In British Columbia, adult males averaged 2.48 kg (5.5 lb) and adult females 2.11 kg (4.7 lb).
