SANDHILL CRANES ACTIVE

 I hadn’t seen my two Sandhill Crane families since mid-August.  But after the corn was harvested last week, they appeared on opposite street corners, chowing on the dregs they love to eat.  The youngster had grown tremendously and its red crown was just beginning to show.  Cranes begin to gather in large numbers this time of year before their long flight to Florida.  I discovered a huge field that ran the length of a seasonal road and think it’ll be the staging area they’ll use this fall.  A couple evenings ago there were over fifty cranes there, feeding, bugling, and flying around.  I expect the crowd will grow before they migrate early to mid-November.