Richard's made some new friends. Two Sand Hill cranes are now living in our backyard. According to Wikipedia, Sand Hill cranes migrate here in winter from Nebraska. They mate for life and therefore are always in pairs. Sometimes I see three together but that must be a child that hasn't been married off yet. The cranes stand four to five feet tall with long spindly legs, fluffy gray feathers and a distinctive red and white face. The birds have little fear of humans, or Richard. Me, they're not so sure.
"God will reward us for taking care of his animals," as Richard threw the dried corn and bird seed in the pair's direction.
"If you feed them, they'll never leave." I admonish.
The larger male eats first while the female hangs back. I threw some food toward her but she wouldn't touch it until he finished.
I yelled at him. "She needs to eat too, you know!" They backed away from this strange, mean, human.
Sand Hill cranes have a very loud bird call. Usually we can hear them coming long before we see them. They also have very specific mealtimes. At precisely 10:30am the squawking starts. It stops the minute Richard appears. They return again at 5 pm. Richard drops everything to run outside at their first call. He holds the corn in his hand while they gently take it from him.
After dining on their gourmet meal, the couple bathes on the edge of the lake. Wings spread, they dance together, hopping and splashing in the water. That must be why they can mate for life. They make sure they still have date night. I must admit it's a beautiful sight. It's our reward.
Dr. Doolitle is real and he lives here with me.
No comments:
Post a Comment