Yellow-crowned Night Heron Versus Blue Crab

Title

Yellow-crowned Night Heron Versus Blue Crab

Artist

Ram Vasudev

Medium

Photograph

Description

Once in a while, we all look back, nostalgically, with sentimental longing, at a period or place with happy memories. As photographers, some of us sometimes look back at slide film days. Although digital sensors have certainly revolutionized photography, slides had their own palette and that unique grungy look that I liked.

Here is my nostalgic look back at a natural history moment I captured on slide film back in November 2000. It was a confrontation/duel between a hungry Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea), looking for breakfast, and a defensive Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus) in a mangrove swamp at the Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in Florida.

The confrontation between the heron and the crab lasted for many, exhilarating, agonizing minutes. Every time the heron tried to grab the crab, the latter fought back valiantly, as in this picture. Eventually, the heron simply gave up and walked away, still hungry! Yay for the crab!

Note: The swamp water is naturally blackish due to tannic acid leaching out of the mangrove tree roots.

Image copyrighted
© Ram Vasudev
All rights reserved

This work is protected by US and International Copyright laws. Do not steal this art by downloading to a computer, printing, copying (including screen capture) or reproducing in any form. It is illegal to do so and all infringements will be pursued to the full extent of the law.

Uploaded

October 13th, 2017

Statistics

Viewed 566 Times  -  Last Visitor from Folly Beach, SC on 04/25/2024 at 10:51 AM

Colors

Embed

Sales Sheet