The migratory return of sandhill cranes here in Idaho is something I look forward to. In Alaska, I looked forward to the fall hunting season on them. Beautiful bird, and their call is unique. We have colts hatching right now, so I thought I'd do a photo phriday of them.


I always looked forward to the fall and spring migrations.



Feeding in the fields they're easy to spot.



Once they nest, a bit harder to see.



In Alaska in the fall, we canon-nettted them in Fairbanks for research.



They were weighed, measured, blood drawn, leg-banded, and released.



After release, some of them wouldn't leave; they wanted a piece of the researchers. Their beaks are deadly.

Very cool photos.

I love seeing their migration, especially in the fall. You'll hear the calls, and finally see them, way up high, barely little dots. And hundreds of them at times here.

Yeah k snow; I always looked forward to the noisy migration in Alaska. Often times, there'd be thousands. You could hear them, but barely see them sometimes.

cool bird , wish we could hunt them

Great photos

We have lots of them here. Very noisy

Love to hear their racuase calls. Here spring has arrived when pair comes back and takes over nesting area used for years.

I look forward to our season Pterodactyl opener in 7 more weeks.
One of the earliest waterfowl to migrate into Manitoba and one of the earliest to leave, but they have to get behind the Blue winged teal in the departure lane.

Great shots again , Jack. I don't see them very much unless I go east of the divide.

Awesome! I live along one of the main flyways for them in the eastern US. They fly over the farm all the time in the fall and winter and it is normal to see 10K plus feeding in the crop fields in the area. We have a season on them but it is by drawn lottery only.

Great photos. I used to have greaters who lived along a spring creek I guided in the 70's and 80's, and thousands of lessers who nested in eastern Idaho around Henry's Lake. It was amazing to watch them take the youngsters up for a flight to teach them how to find thermals.

We get big migrations of them here, headed toward Spain and Portugal, and back north in the spring. The spring migrations are much harder to witness, but I love hearing the big flights at night.

Pete

They come through here thick in the fall and spring. I have never seen any nest here. I used to hunt them a lot over decoys in the stubble fields. You can see 1000's in a field feeding.

swifty - What are the species you're seeing and hearing in Europe? I saw many different and strikingly beautiful species in Russia and Mongolia (Demoiselle, white-naped, common, hooded, Japanese, and Siberian white).

Jack