The Tall One Takes the Lookout

Description

Taken seconds apart from its companion frame, this one catches the young heron at full stretch, neck drawn straight up like a fencepost, surveying the canola field that glows soft and green-gold behind the cottonwood leaves. The two darker birds at its side stay hunched and unimpressed, facing the other way, while the neighbor on the right branch mirrors the tall pose from a polite distance. Somebody in this tree thinks he’s in charge, and this evening he might be right. The pale nest of twigs anchors the composition like a table set for company.