THE GREAT BLUE HERON by Hayward...

THE GREAT BLUE HERON by Hayward Allen (NorthWord Press: $16.95). Standing over 4 feet tall and with a wingspan of over 6 feet, the great blue heron ( Ardea herodias , above) ranks among North America’s largest birds. Although its size and distinctive appearance make it easy to recognize, the great blue has managed to elude most ornithologists’ attempts to study it. Because it is difficult to stalk, not particularly tasty and lacks the elegant plumage that caused the related snowy egret to be hunted to the brink of extinction, a relatively large population of great blue herons has survived most of the 20th Century; however, pollution and destruction of the wetlands it inhabits now threaten its continued survival.