Programs
Heron Watch
Observe the Magnificent Great Blue Herons and Their Chicks at Stow Lake
Six Saturdays During the Spring Nesting Season in April and May
2012 season starts April 14 and concludes May 19, 2012.
In 1993, Nancy DeStefanis, director of San Francisco Nature Education, discovered the first pair of nesting Great Blue Herons. This turned out to be the first recorded sighting of nesting Great Blue Herons in the city of San Francisco.
The herons court, build their nests, mate and lay eggs between January and March.
By April, at least one or more nests have chicks in them.
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We start our interpretive program in April. The public can experience the excitement of these four foot tall birds with six foot wingspans flying in and out of the nests-brooding the chicks, feeding the chicks, etc.
Naturalists and interns from San Francisco Nature Education are stationed at the observation site with spotting scopes, ready to offer spectacular views into the Great Blue Heron nests and answer questions.
Click here to view Heron Watch 2009 Program Photos
Click here to view or download "Great Blue Heron Colony Nesting and Fledging Chronology, 1993-Present".
Go heron-watching with SF Nature Education. Part of "The Bay Nature on The Air" program. Duration: 02:45 / Produced by Rick Bacigalupi / Alternate video link / Flash Plug-in |
2012 Season Saturday Dates:
April 14, 21, 28 and May 5, 12, 19.
Observation deck is open from 10am to 1pm.
Naturalist led walk every Saturday
to observe chicks and other nesting
birds from various spots around the
Lake and Strawberry Island. Terrain
is flat.
10:30am-noon - meet at observation site.
Adults: $10, young adults and children free.
Click here for a printable map of Stow Lake.
