Re: Herons, etc.
Ever watched a Cormorant take off from sitting on a wooden post at the end of a groin on the beach? You've heard of JATO (Jet Assisted Take Off), but they employ ShATO by defecating mightily as they launch themselves vertically upwards with muscular contractions of the leg and flight muscles. Don't get too near, it can squirt for tens of feet behind the perpetrator (or should that be poopetrator)