In some of the dragonfly photos I’ve posted, I’ve mentioned that they are territorial and will claim a nebulous little bit of airspace and chase away all the other dragonflies that approach or pass through it.

Many birds are too, and not all of them are chased away so easily. This great blue heron wandered into a red-winged blackbird’s nesting area, which pissed off that red-winged blackbird a whole lot. He started squawking, then flapped his wings, then jumped up off his reed and squawked a bit, progressing from all the shades of Code Yellow to Code Orange to Code Red.

The heron did not care. It just stood there looking blankly around, which is pretty much the job description of a heron, and it is committed to that role.

Finally, the red-winged blackbird flew over to the heron. It flew behind and squawked. It flew in front and it squawked. And, finally, it just started attacking the heron with its claws.

The heron did not care. It just stood there looking blankly around etc. etc. etc.

I so wish that reed was not there. I was clicking away knowing the blackbird was coming from a different angle each time, not knowing where to stand to get the best angle. Nonetheless, and even with the blur of the speeding blackbird, it’s a recognizable photo of a red-winged blackbird attacking an utterly uncaring great blue heron under circumstances I couldn’t predict, and that’s why I love this photo.

I have captured similar photos with red-winged blackbirds and other birds that will show up here eventually. Tension between animals acting on instinct is a fun subject to work with.

May 4, 2019. Cropped from a larger image. Nikon D7100 (DX sensor), Tamron 100–400mm lens at 340mm (35mm equivalent: 510mm), f/6.7, 1/350, ISO 280.