Saturday, April 14, 2007

Sky and Sandhill Cranes

Gray Saturday sky for April 14, 2007The picture about says it all. Yuk.

It feels cold outside. Not like spring.

The snow is almost all melted, but there's snow in the forecast for tomorrow. We patiently wait for spring to return.


Three sandhill cranes in the neighbor's horse pastureOur next door neighbor has been know to occasionally acquire unknown species of chickens that make strange noises.

Yesterday when we heard loud bird noises from the neighbor's horse pasture, we assumed it was something domestic. They looked too big to be chickens, so I ran in to get my camera with the zoom lens to check them out.

Sandhill Cranes! They have an unusual windpipe allowing them to be heard up to a mile away.


Male and female sandhill craneIn the past we've unsuccessfully tried to see cranes in the wild. What a treat to have them land next door for a few minutes.

More info on Sandhill Cranes including a sound recording of their call is here.