Not the Usual

Out on our walk today, I looked down at the pond (because I always check the pond) and did a major doubletake. There on the fallen tree, where I have seen great blue herons, green herons, and ducks of various sorts, was a great egret!! Even The Husband was sufficiently impressed to hold Swee'pea's leash so that I could try to get a decent shot of it. And then, while I was taking photos of the egret, I saw something blue and white fly in and land on a limb of the same tree that sticks up at the far end. I assumed it was a blue jay, but turned my camera to focus on it and DANG! It was a female belted kingfisher!! And there they both sat on the same tree. It should be noted that a farm pond in the middle of central Virginia is NOT where you would expect to see a great egret. They do migrate through here, so it's not unheard of, but still, it's a surprise. The kingfisher is a much more likely sighting, but still fun to see because it doesn't happen (to me) often.

The two extras are the kingfisher, and then a shot of both of them so you can see how they were arranged on the tree. It might be easier to see the kingfisher in the group shot (ha!) if you embiggen it.