The Sandhill Crane - Part Two

My fascination with the beautiful sandhill crane continues today.  Yesterday I drove back to where I saw the birds on Saturday and they were still there.  When I went around the block to pick up Charlie so he could see them, they must have flown off, because when we got back to the development, they were gone.  I do know that it is time for them to migrate to Florida - typical Michigan snowbird.

I went online to see what I could learn about them and found out that they are believed to be the oldest living species of bird, having existed for 9 million years in their present form.  They can stand up to five feet tall and have a wingspan of six to seven feet.  There is a sanctuary for them here in Michigan with around 9,000 of them in summer.

Here are some of the photos I took yesterday with my camera:

 Sandhill cranes are very wary of humans so I tried to stay in my car.

"You go your way and we'll go ours"

I love a parade

The Sandhill Crane

Not too far away from me they tore down an old elementary school to put in a small subdivision.  They only have one model home built, but I thought I would drive past yesterday to see the layout of the sub.  Imagine my surprise when I was driving through to see these glorious sandhill cranes.

It is not that I have never seen them around here before, but it has been many, many years.  I would occasionally see them along the creek bank behind my home.  It is much more common to see snowy egrets and blue herons.  I only have to wonder where they will go once the development commences in earnest.