Further to the postings about Herons using bait to catch fish, some years
ago I was consulted by a Dr Antoni V. Milewski of the Percy FitzPatrick
Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, who was drafting
a paper about the intelligence of birds and the apparent above-average
intelligence of some Australian bird groups, (including lyrebirds, hence my
involvement).
In reviewing the general situation he had written in a draft, "Several
species of heron use bait as tools to attract fish". So it would seem that
this is recognised. Unfortunately Dr Milewski didn't elaborate, nor, in the
material he gave me, give any references.
Another Heron fishing technique of interest, which I think has not been
mentioned in the recent discussion, is described in "A New Dictionary of
Birds" (Ed. Sir A. Landsborough Thomson, Nelson, 1964). The Heron entry was
by Landsborough Thomson, himself, and he wrote (page 36):
"A particularly interesting method is commonly used by the Black Heron
Hydranassa ardesiaca of Africa; the bird stands motionless in the shallows,
with bill directed downwards, while the wings are held extended in a forward
position so that they form a canopy over the head. The tips of the wing
feathers may be in the water, if the latter is deep enough, as some
published photographs show. It is thought that the patch of shade
constitutes a false refuge into which fish are lured; it has also been
suggested that the bird's vision is helped by the cutting out of reflections
from the surface in a bright light."
Syd
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