Feather Care

I was in the park at first light this morning and captured various images of a preening Grey Heron. The first image is somewhere between a backlit and a sidelit shot and I like how the neck plumes, beak and crest are partially illuminated. The second image shows the bird accessing oil from the uropygial gland, followed by the use of the toe nail as a comb for reaching those areas out of range of the bill. Finally, one of the bird working on the feathers of the upper neck - obviously at the extreme range of its reach.