A few moments earlier I had disturbed a heron on a small pond, the same one Stevens depicted just over 100 years ago, just before where the Sentier du Prince meets the Chemin de Notre-Dame. Only a few hundred metres further on I came upon another pond, again marked by Stevens, just beside the 85 on his map. There, in the characteristic stillness of a hunter, stood another heron, intent.
I advanced in short, careful steps, certain it would lift. It remained, prey-centred.
Herons are the largest birds you are likely to encounter in the Forest. They feed mainly on frogs and fish and do not require a long expanse of water to take flight. Something of a jump jet, if you will. A swan, though larger, needs room to run and gather itself, and so mistrusts confined, wooded ponds.
If you can, step quietly, without hound, during the week and away from the weekend walkers.
