Sandhill Cranes - Part 1

My hubby is the best birding partner I could ask for! Ever since I heard about Sandhill Cranes flocking to the Llano Seco Unit during their migration, I couldn't wait to see them with my very own eyes. Well, thanks to my hubby, I finally got to see them! It was his idea to drive over to the Wildlife Management Area to see if there was finally some water there.

When we arrived, it looked like they had just started filling it up and there was just enough water to attract exactly what I was looking for. At first glance, I thought there was a group of ostriches or emus in the field! Turns out, they were Sandhill Cranes and they were HUGE! Much bigger than I thought they would be.

It was really windy and the cranes were a little far away for my camera to shoot clearly, but I managed to get a few decent photos.

I've never seen a Sandhill Crane before and was delighted to finally add them to my Big Year list. They make the coolest sound!

 More photos coming tomorrow...

The Grassy Plains

~Llano Seco Unit, part of the North Central Valley Wildlife Management Area~

Llano Seco is beginning to fill up with water. Soon, thousands of wintering waterfowl will gather here. For now, the Sandhill Cranes are beginning to arrive and there are lots of other birds to take photos of.

Like these White-crowned Sparrows...

(an adult and a juvenile with brown stripes instead of white ones)

There are some Great Egrets waaay out there in the distance...

...and here's a female Brewer's Blackbird on the viewing platform...

...and a Golden-crowned Sparrow...

...and a Killdeer and his reflection...

This little bench looks like a nice place to sit for a while and watch the cranes and geese fly over...

Or maybe I'll relax at the picnic table and watch the sun come up...

Either way, I think I'll stay a while and let the sounds of the birds take away all my stress...

Ed's Pond

This is Ed's Pond at the Llano Seco Unit of the North Central Valley Wildlife Management Area...

 Isn't it pretty?

There is also a viewing platform down the road, but there wasn't any water around when we were there to take photos. Hopefully, the next time we visit we'll see the Sandhill Cranes that the area is known for!

Gotcha!

It took making my hubby pull over on the side of the road, but I finally got some clear photos of the Sandhill Cranes at Llano Seco! From the walking trail, they are so far away in the field that it's been tough to get good photos, so when I saw some from 7 Mile Lane as we were driving away, I jumped at the opportunity!

 They sure are messy eaters!

Morning Light

I love how easy it is to take photos of Sandhill Cranes while they are in flight. I guess it's because they are so big!

 (Llano Seco Wildlife Area viewing platform)

Red-wings

Red-winged Blackbird at Llano Seco...

Fun fact: The Red-winged Blackbird is a highly polygynous species, meaning males have many female mates – up to 15 in some cases. In some populations 90 percent of territorial males have more than one female nesting on their territories. But all is not as it seems: one-quarter to one-half of nestlings turn out to have been sired by someone other than the territorial male.

They're Back!

The Sandhill Cranes have returned to Llano Seco!

We were so excited to see them exactly a year ago today from the first time we ever saw a Sandhill Crane!

 We were on the walking trail right as the sun came up at 7:15.

Because of the Sonoma fires blowing smoke our way (these photos were taken a week ago), there was a haze over the sun, casting it in a pink glow...

I love taking photos of cranes in flight because they are slow-moving and I can actually follow them with my camera!

It's nice to have a set date of when we can expect their arrival during their winter migration stop-over from up north...

 Safe travels, my friends!