NDR - sandhills in MA !

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Dick Sargeant

Well-known member
A neighbor told my wife about seeing some sandhill cranes a little north of us in Rowley, MA. I figured they were long gone but got quite a nice surprize when I went up there to check..........

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They were hanging out is a cornfield and chowing down............

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I have never seen one of these up close, just pictures from AL Hansen. A guy who was also taking some pics told me they are starting to populate a little out here in the east with a few nesting pairs in Maine and Canada. He also mentioned that they can get pretty animated hopping up and down.......I think Al has posted some of that.

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Apparently these 2 have been around for a couple weeks. If anyone want to try to see them around here they are using a small cornfield off Rt 1 a little south of where the Rowley river crosses route 1.

sarge
 
Great pictures. There is at least one spot in Maine where sandhills have been present all summer for the past several years. Don't know if they've been breeding successfully, but they are regularly present.

Perhaps they are expanding east?
 
They are very neat birds to see. I remember seeing them for the first time overwintering outside of Gainesville, FL.

There is a small breeding population developing here in Ohio. There are some nests not too far from where I live. I haven't seen them here yet.

Here is a link to a video from the ODNR: www.dnr.state.oh.us/Default.aspx?23693

Tom
 
Thanks Tom - I will give that a look. I guess they may be expanding their range to the east a little. There is also a whooping crane, as I understand it, that is bigger but very much endangered.
 
There has been a lot of talk about a season for them in Ontario. We see thousands passing through in the fall and I know an area a couple of hundred miles north of here where there are several thousand birds breeding annually. I don't recall having seen one in this area until about 25 years ago .

Those are really great pictures! I don't often get to see them with such detail. Thanks for sharing.
 
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If anyone wants to read all about Cranes of the world check out - "Birds of Heaven", by Peter Mathiessen. He goes around the world and writes about each specie. Very interesting read. There is one Russian crane that migrates OVER the Himalayan Mts., for instance. It tells all about our N. American Cranes and there changing ranges. Better than I can. Check it out this winter, after duck season of course.
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Starting to see (and hear) more groups of them flying the Ohio River corridor down here. Uncanny how far off that "trilling" can be heard.
 
We have seen a few in the last couple of years in the Champlain Valley in VT. We see a ton on our trip to SK every year, but is real special to see them at home.
 
saw a flight in crowder ms 2 weekends ago. I had heard about them being in the ms delta before but had never seen it. Seen em in texas, and alaska, but never around home until last year. Had a dozen come thru my farm in earle arkansas last year ( a first I had ever seen them in arkansas) and a week later we had a swan come thru! The swan was by himself, and if he made thru the weekend Id be surprised.

sandhills rock. But with them restocking trumpters in a lot of places, the hopes of expanded places with hunting oppurtinites are all bt gone. travis
 
We have seen a huge increase in sandhill cranes around here over the past 2 years. Flocks fly over all the time and I can't drive down the road without seeing groups in the neighboring cut corn and bean fields. I am out in the "country" so theres gonna be a lot more here close by taking advantage of the local agriculture, but I mean there are TONS of them. I think the first one I ever saw was 5 years ago and now they are like robins or crows.

Being Michigan, the chances of adding them to the fair game list will be about as good as adding mourning doves statewide.
 
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Hey Bill - there have been 3-5 just down the road from the house everyday for about 2 weeks now... If you're north driving around let me know and I'll show you where they are.
 
Being Michigan, the chances of adding them to the fair game list will be about as good as adding mourning doves statewide.
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Scott

My dad has had breeding pairs/family groups around him for a couple years as well. He and I kicked a couple off the pond going out hunting during early goose, then the next day I was up in a tree stand for early doe season, and had a flock of 8-10 fly right over the treetops, not 40 yards away, as quiet as could be. They proceeded over a mile north and landed to feed, and man what a ruckus.

Yeah, Michigan will have a legal season right after we get a dove season and mute swan season.

Chuck
 
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