I have finally located a pair of nesting Great Blue Herons and they are not too far from the house. At this time of year, the male is responsible for gathering sticks with which the female carefully constructs their nest. She can be very selective about the size and shape of the stick. When he returns with a particularly good choice he is rewarded with sex (or at least this is my take on the apparent quid pro quo). Herons can be very naughty, shamelessly stealing sticks from unoccupied adjacent nests. I will be very interested to see what happens when a returning heron discovers a neighbor pilfering from his nest. Stay tuned.