Around Marsh Creek, it always pays to have your smartphone handy when out for a walk or a bike ride.

Yesterday, the Marsh Creek Avian Club held its morning meeting in the big pond at the end of Herons Nest Lane. A bicyclist making the turn had to be sharp-eyed to spot the quiet gathering through all the new foliage that’s grown up since his last visit.

What made the event so special was the sudden appearance of a sizeable Blue Heron, who after takeoff from the pond, almost flew headlong into the photographer. Spooked, it veered off quickly in a different direction. But not before the creature was captured … in ones and zeroes … on the visitor’s digital camera phone.