Sandhill Cranes

by Stan Tekiela
© NatureSmart
September 15, 2005

Birds are one of the most diverse groups of animals on the face of the earth. From the tiniest of all birds, the 3-inch long hummingbird, to the largest, the 6-foot tall Ostrich, birds are remarkably different. Think about it. There are over 9,000 different types of birds in the world and each is very unique.

Even birds that are closely related to each other are often very different. In the Eastern half of North America, there are 17 species of gulls, but each gull is remarkably different from the next. And each of the 14 species of blackbirds is vastly different from each other. We have over 20 species of ducks and 6 different kinds of geese. And you guessed it; they are all very different from each other.

Amongst all of this avian diversity stand the Cranes. There are 15 species of crane in the world but just two occur in North America—the Whooping Crane and the Sandhill Crane (Grus Canadensis).

Sandhill Cranes are tall and stately birds, standing four feet tall and have wingspans of 6-7 feet. They are certainly the tallest birds in the northland. Males weight between 10 and 12 pounds while the females are 9-10 pounds.

Sandhill Cranes are slate-gray with long legs and neck. In defiance of their dull gray color, they sport a bright crimson red cap punctuated with a piercing orange-yellow eye. In most areas Sandhills frequently preen with mud stained with iron oxide, consequently they appear reddish brown rather than gray.

Sandhill Cranes are often confused with Great Blue Herons. While they may be of similar height, and color, there are a lot of differences between the birds. One easy way to differentiate between the heron and the cane is in the way they hold their necks. The Sandhill Crane holds their neck straight, especially in flight or while walking on land. The Great Blue Heron holds its neck in a tight "S" pattern, especially in flight. Cranes also have a distinctive rapid upstroke in flight compared to the herons slow and steady flapping.

What really amazes me about the Sandhill Crane is not its size or coloration. No, I am amazed at how long the Sandhill Crane has been flying across North America. Sandhills are some of the oldest living birds in North America. Fossils of Sandhills date back 9 million years. That is several million years before people started to walk upright and long before many other birds. A bird with that kind of lineage would lead a naturalist to suspect it was a primitive or an outdated bird destine for extinction. But that is not the case with these birds. They have changed little over the past 9 million years, presumably because they are so well adapted for any change the world throws their way.

If the sight of a Sandhill Crane doesn’t move you to absolute admiration, the call of the Sandhill will resound within you for a lifetime. Its distinctive trumpet-like call comes from deep within a curved windpipe, like the bent tubes of a trumpet. The call can be so loud that an individual bird can be heard up to 3 miles away making them heard well before they are seen.

It is not uncommon for Sandhill Cranes to live up to 20 years. They don’t breed until 3 to 5 years of age. During the first few attempts of mating they may change partners until they get a good partner and a good territory. After that they will stay mated for the rest of their lives and occupy the same territory.

Befitting their grace and beauty, the Sandhill Crane is a dazzling dancer. For courtship and for shear pleasure, the cranes will dance. Standing face to face, the pair will bow than with their wings spread and neck arched, they throw back their heads and trumpet a musical song just before they spring up into the air. Flapping their wings as if in slow motion they slowly return to earth. They than skip, hop and spin around like a ballerina and than spring back into the air. At times they pick up a small twig or bunch of grass and toss it about to break up the dance routine. It is a wonderful sight. Until next time…

 

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