Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Sandhill Crane & Chicks

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes;

My post this week is on the Sandhill Crane. It has a red forehead and white cheeks and the sexes look alike. They have long dark legs and a dark bill. The Male can weigh as much as 10lb and the female 8lb. The height can range from almost 3ft-4ft tall.


More shots of the  5 Sandhill Cranes seen in my SIL's neighborhood.


Sandhill Crane grooming.


We saw the Sandhill Crane family on the next to last day of our trip. The two chicks were just adorable. Immature birds have a reddish brown upperparts and gray underparts.



My Florida vacation started with seeing the Sandhill Cranes at my SIL's place and was ending with seeing the Sandhill Cranes and their chicks.




Thanks for visiting my blog and post, I hope you enjoyed the Sandhill Cranes.
Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.
Thanks to Stewart for hosting Wild Bird Wednesday and thanks to Michelle for hosting Nature Notes.
I wish everyone a happy week ahead and Happy Birding!

64 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

so very cute with their gangly babies!

Our Neck of the Woods said...

Oh my gosh, the chicks are so adorable! I love seeing the sweet family :)

i stora drag said...

Yes, I've enjoyed your cranes. They are not the same sort which visit us here in Sweden.
The babies are sooo cute! Fantastic wievs!
Greetings Pia

Hootin Anni said...

Amazing. I so anxiously awaiting some ducklings, or some small baby goslings or something on the water spots here. Your baby cranes are sweet Eileen.

Debbie said...

it's amazing those skinny legs can hold them up!!

love those little ones!!

EG CameraGirl said...

What a great sighting, Eileen! I hope a few are heading north soon so I can them. :)) Lucky you to see them in Florida!

Gail Dixon said...

How wonderful! I've seen the sandhill crane once at a drive-thru wildlife park in Texas. The chicks are adorable and a first for me. I'd call this a successful trip. :)

mick said...

Great photos and how nice to see both the adults and chicks.

Fjällripan said...

Beautiful photos of the cranes! They looks very much alike ours...They havent arrived yet because the spring is so late this year...but soon they will come :))

Elizabeth Edwards said...

well, i guess that is the bird i got in my Florida picture the other day. maybe it was a bit more than a few days, i will have to find my post. it was taken in Tampa, at Busch Gardens. (off to look.) thanks, for that info. nice shots. i love learning all about birds. ( :

Julie G. said...

There is just something special about Sandhill Cranes. How lucky you were to see these beautiful birds. Fantastic photographs, Eileen! Love the youngsters! I'm hoping to see some sandhill chicks in our area soon.

DIMI said...

Hallo Eileen!Wonderful pictures!Those chicks looks so cute!!Lovely family,are'nt they?Have a lovely week!
Dimi..

Carole M. said...

oh yes beautiful and such long, graceful legs ..

NatureFootstep said...

that is soem long legged chicks. So sweet. :) Thanks for sharing.

Elaine said...

What a treat to see the two chicks! Florida is fortunate to have a resident population. I'm looking forward to seeing the Sandhills here in Fairbanks soon!

Giga said...

Żurawie to piekne ptaki, a ich dzieci są urocze. Bardzo ładne i miłe zdjęcia. Pozdrawiam.
Cranes are beautiful birds, and their children are adorable. Very nice and nice pictures. Yours.

DeniseinVA said...

Hi Eileen, it must have been so exciting to see these cranes. You got some wonderful photos of them. Thanks for stopping by with the id on my ducks and also for the good tips for sightings. I'll definitely remember that when we go back.

grammie g said...

Hi Eileen ...The Sandhill Crane families are wonderful and very tall birds!!! Those little ones with "long legs"are so cute!!
Grace

Karen said...

Cool shots! The chicks are so gawky and cute!

magnoliasntea said...

Such wonderful pictures! I loved seeing those babies. Thank you for sharing your photos.

Laura said...

just beautiful... so elegant Eileen.

caite said...

the babies are so, so cute, so fuzzy.

Lynne said...

Loved seeing the Sandhill Cranes . . . and the little ones!

AFTERMATH said...

Very nice series of pics. I esp enjoyed the golf balls in the first image! Looks like a field o crane eggs! I envy you yourr cranes, too my dear. I have yet to get any pics. We have them in Maine as uncommon summer migrants and I missed the in Florida. Guess I'll have to go back to keep up with you! Nice work

Maude Lynn said...

The chicks are so cute!

Rajesh said...

Beautiful images of the crane.

Arija said...

What a worthwhile visit. Isn't it great to see growing families?

AVCr8teur said...

I have never seen the babies. How wonderful to see them during your vacation!

Rosemary Aubut said...

Loving those babies! Great shots!

Rebecca said...

Great post! Love the grooming shot and the little chicks :)

Carletta said...

I'm sure this had to be a highlight of your trip.
Wonderful shots Eileen! Those chicks are delightful to see.

NatureStop said...

Wonderful pics. Thanks for sharing.Have a great day!

Shantana

Kathie Brown said...

I love sandhill cranes and those babies are just adorable! How wonderful that you get to see them. Thanks for sharing them with us!

orchid0324 said...

Dearest Eileen,
Hello, how wonderful to see the beautiful Sandhill Crane and its families♡♡♡
We used to have almost 400 cranes in our city park which has a big lake. I DO miss them a lot after they were all killed due to the bird's flue some years ago. So sorry for the sad story but couldn't help write about it(^^;)
I hope you are going to have a wonderful new week my friend.

Sending you lots of love and hugs from Japan, xoxo Miyako*
 

giorno26 ¸¸.•*¨*•. said...

Hello Eileein,
che belle queste tue foto :))
La natura è sempre meravigliosa.
By Myriam

Phil Slade said...

Brilliant Eileen. Seeing that family of cranes would beat a round of golf anyday.

Ana Mínguez Corella said...

Ohhh Just beautiful.. Congrats

Kerri Farley said...

I would LOVE to see these birds! Great series!

Stewart M said...

The birds are remarkable - but the golf balls make me laugh!

Cheers and thanks for linking to WBW.

Stewart M - Melbourne

Anonymous said...

What beautiful shots.

Richard Pegler said...

Those young cranes are really cute, but the adults are very special, and I'd love to see these birds for real!
Great stuff!!

Montanagirl said...

Oh my, those chicks stole my heart!

George said...

These are wonderful photos of the cranes. I especially enjoyed seeing the chicks.

Millie and Walter said...

Such cute pictures of the babies.

Cindy

Icy BC said...

They are all so adorable! The chicks look very darling!

Indrani said...

These birds are so interesting to watch. Great shots.

Grandma Barb's This and That said...

Great photos of the Sand Hill Cranes! I've never seen any. The chicks are so cute with their long legs. I love the photo of the one grooming.

Carver said...

Wonderful family shots of the sandhill cranes. The babies are so cute.

Anonymous said...

Wow, this would be a really great yard bird to have!

Gattina said...

Beautiful pictures !

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Great photos of the Sandhill Cranes and the chicks... My son has those cranes in his area (Galveston, TX) during the winter...

Hugs,
Betsy

Anonymous said...

NIce shots of the Crane family!

Jen said...

Magnificent birds! I can't wait to see some in person.

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Aren't they wonderful! You were really lucky to get them with the trees in the background, shows how tall they actually are!

Linda said...

Oh, I would love to see their chicks! Thanks for showing them to us.

islandwonder said...

Those are some big birds. I have never seen anything like them.

Bob Bushell said...

The Cranes and chicks, they are beautiful. Thanks Eileen.

Irma said...

Great photos of the cranes.
Well photographed.
Best wishes, Irma

Crafty Green Poet said...

those youngsters are so cute!

CabinGirl said...

Wow - so cool to see baby birds already! We won't see any for a couple more weeks yet up here. And GREEN GRASS! Great idea to head south, Eileen :-)

Wally Jones said...

We're really seeing a lot crane families now (central Florida).
It's great you had a chance to see them while you were visiting!
Thank you for sharing the pictures!

Red Nomad OZ said...

The adult birds look a little like the Australian Brolga - but I've never seen a Brolga chick, so can't say if the family resemblance extends to the children!!!

Maria said...

This is so charming, Thanks for sharing!

Rambling Woods said...

Oh how adorable...Those long legs..wonderful post for NN Eileen.. hugs...

Happy Monday!

  Wishing everyone a great day and a ha ppy new week! "Calm is a super power. Don't let stress kill your happiness." "Jud...