Henry

This very cool bird is not afraid of people. On several visits to the beach, while I was in Hervey Bay, Australia, I happened upon Henry. (For the record, I should divulge that his name is probably unknown to him, although I did greet him by name on several occasions and he didn't object. Something about his calm countenance and unbothered demeaner made me identify him as Henry.) He generally stood as you see him, with the surf flowing over his feet. As I approached, he looked neither left nor right, but placidly continued to gaze forward, as if studying the sea. The first time I encountered him- and he is a fine specimen, black and white and standing about 30 inches tall- I was impressed and wanted to photograph him. Assuming that as I approached he would take his leave, I started shooting pictures of him from about 50 feet. He remained, so I shot again at 40 feet, then 30. He stood his ground. After a shot at 20 feet, I was sure that that was all, but Henry just continued standing there, looking straight ahead. I began to consider 2 possibilities- either this bird was tame and/or used to paparazzi OR he was going to let me get just a bit closer, then he was going to take a bite out of my leg. With trepidation, I took a few steps closer, took this picture, then decided that I had pushed my luck far enough, and continued by, giving him a large berth as I went around. Several times, as I continued on my way down the beach, I turned back, only to see Henry remaining as he had been all along, studying the surf. As I said, Henry is one cool bird.