Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Help Is the Blue Heron a threat?

I enjoy watching Great Blue Herons.

However, they probably have no real positive effect on your pond. They can introduce parasites. They can also eat some of your fish, and/or damage them by 'spiking' them. You may see some LMB with puncture-type wounds, and that would be due to a Heron.

It really comes down to the level of 'damage' that you observe due to Herons that form your view on letting them coexist peacefully, or making life more difficult for them.

Finally, I view the Great Blue Heron as a creature with prehistoric roots almost like a Pterodactyl. So, in my mind, I feel they have deep instincts. We've heard stories of Herons taking a fish from one body of water and dropping it in another body of water; if true, I view that as the bird creating a new food source by stocking a pond. When you see a large LMB with puncture wounds, that fish is usually too large for the Heron to eat; in that case, I think the Heron is trying to eliminate a competitor for the same food base.