Back on Tuesday, May 5th, Danielle Putnam shared some Wood Duck photos she snapped when the Michigamme River was flooding near her home. Today she shares another visitor that was enjoying the flooding river waters and frequented Danielle’s back yard for several days, a Sandhill Crane. Danielle has been feeding the wild Geese with some food her neighbor gave her that she feeds her tame Geese and the Sandhill Crane found that food and help himself to it and has come back a few days in a row for more.

Danielle said she played a recording of a Sandhill Crane and it answered her in today’s video. Interesting facts about these large birds... they are monomorphic, which means the male and female look the same. Their unison call (the call made by both cranes when they are together) can help distinguish between the male and the female though. The male will point his neck and bill straight up to the sky and give out a singular call, while the female responds with two notes and points her bill more horizontally. From the looks of the head placement in Danielle’s video, I’m guessing it’s a male. These birds have an almost prehistoric sound to them and quite distinct, so there’s no mistaking when they’re around.

* The oldest Sandhill Crane on record was at least 37 years, 3
months old. Originally banded in Florida in 1982, it was found in
Wisconsin in 2019.
Those are some awesome Sandhill Crane
Photos and video! They have always been
among my favorite birds, and Mary they
do indeed sound prehistoric! According to
the Cornell Lab of Ornithology:
The earliest Sandhill Crane fossil,
estimated to be 2.5 million years old,
was unearthed in Florida.
And they are long lived birds as well:
The oldest Sandhill Crane on record
was at least 37 years, 3 months old.
Originally banded in Florida in 1982,
it was found in Wisconsin in 2019.

Oops sorry about the unwanted paste.
Was trying to add a thank you to Danielle!

Awesome...so awesome. (And thanks for the extra
info Cindy~) Decades ago, there was a spot on
Post Road where many Sandhills hung out...I used
to just park the car, turn it off and sit there
and watch them and listen, (now, it's filled with
houses)...oh the memories....Awesome birds. I
watched a You Tube, where a Sandhill Crane went
and knocked on a woman's door and basically
adopted her. She fed him, they hung out, and one
day, he brought his Lady and later, they brought
the baby. That happened several years in a row.
That is a blessing, indeed!

Donna, we have friends in Jackson MI
whose backyards border a small stream.
The neighbor puts out corn and the cranes
will literally come pecking on his patio
door to be fed!
Here in Indiana we have a popular crane
hangout too, Jasper-Pulaski State Fish &
Wildlife area. It is truly a major event in
the Fall, with Sandhill numbers sometimes
over 25,000! Talk about noisy lol :)

That is so cool...I bet that is LOUD!


For after all, the best thing one can do when it is
raining is to let it rain.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Hi
The sandhill cranes are interesting birds. They sound
like I imagine pterodactyls did. There is an area
near Jackson, MI called the Phyllis Haehnle Memorial
Sanctuary. At one time it was a hotspot during
migration, but between vegetation growth and
irregular water levels fewer birds are seen.

There is a natural area north of Ann Arbor/east of
Brighton called Kensington Metropark where it is
common to see & hear the cranes. They acclimate to
people well, but that's not always good. I've had one
come and peer at me when I was at a picnic table. I
don't think feeding wildlife is a good idea, at least
not ones that could give you a painful peck (cranes,
geese) or bite (bear).

I just love Sandhill cranes. Beautiful bird and so
cool to watch.