WILDLIFE OF THE WEEK
Sandhill Crane
With winter conditions increasingly in the rearview mirror here in Georgia, I’ve been excited to get out and look for some of its tell-tale signs. After the stillness of a long Winter, there is something exhilarating and fresh about the coming seasons of plenty. Taking a much-needed evening stroll through the woods in Athens late this week, I was on the hunt for such signs, pausing often to listen for frogs or search for early Spring Ephemerals on the leafy forest floor.
Crossing a boardwalk into the open sky of a beaver marsh, I heard an unmistakable, whinny-like sound and instinctively looked up into the gray sky. That bugling, ancient-sounding call belonged to the sandhill crane (Antigone canadensis), one of North America’s largest birds and the world’s most numerous crane species. From previous experience in Florida, Montana, and Alaska, I knew that hearing that call probably meant the birds were flying high above me—their loud cries carry remarkably far, and I usually hear sandhill cranes long before I see them.
I can remember once hearing some while hiking in Denali National Park in Alaska that were flying so high above me that even in the bright blue, cloudless sky of a summer day I couldn’t see them without binoculars. These ones were much lower, and I spotted a flock of 19 individuals flying Northward in a loose u-shaped formation. A glance through my binoculars showed their long legs trailing behind them, huge wings alternating between heavy flaps and sturdy gliding, and their necks stretched out before them.
Are sandhill cranes common in this part Georgia? Absolutely not! What I was lucky enough to witness was a very literal fly-by. Breeding in far northern latitudes across the Northern US and Canada, many of these cranes migrate North in early Spring, and Northern Georgia is right along one of their routes. These ones were probably on their way up from the Southwest portion of the state or any of their major wintering or year-round strongholds in the state of Florida.
Watching them fade from view and still hearing those loud whinnies, I was reminded of a naturalist trip to Australia several years ago when I had a similar experience with their cousin from down-under, the Brolga (A. rubicunda), which I had been searching for all over the Eastern seaboard. My first and only brolga sighting had been a similarly sized flock flying far overhead whose strikingly similar voices had also gotten me to look up.
With sandhill cranes passing through spring ephemerals making an appearance later in my walk—see the beautiful Hepatica blossom I photographed in the right panel—I spent the rest of the hike with a bit of a ‘spring’ in my step. What a privilege it is to experience each Spring in a seasonal climate, especially in a place like Georgia where it is such a long and luxurious affair. Brace yourself, lots of Spring posts and newsletters are coming!
A sandhill crane and two chicks, known as colts. Image by Stan Kirschner from Pixabay
A round-lobed hepatica (Hepatica americana) spotted not long after I heard the cranes.
A close-up of a sandhill crane. Image by Art Kuiper from Pixabay
FEATURED BLOG POST
Are Robins Really a Sign of Spring?
On the topic of birds that signal Spring, I’ve got to mention North America’s most famous harbinger: the American Robin. One of my favorite birds, this hefty, vociferous, and widespread thrush has the illustrious distinction of being the first species ever featured on Gulo in Nature’s Wildlife Spotlight Series. In this Naturalist Answer’s post, I address the natural history behind why robins are considered signs of Spring in the Americas. Inside, you’ll find some basics on bird migration, details on how robins get around, and plenty of links and connections to other nature curiosities explored in the blog. Check it out and please share with fellow nature-lovers!
RECOMMENDED READING
A Season on the Wind by Kenn Kaufman
Those of the Gray Wind: Sandhill Cranes by Paul A. Johnsgard
North on the Wind by Bruce Beehler
NATURALIST WORD OF THE WEEK
Petrichor (n.) - The smell of the earth when rain falls on dry soil. A common scent in early Spring, often accompanied on the breeze by the smells of wet leaves and early tree flowers.
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