Photo Friday: Sandhill Cranes

A graceful Sandhill Crane dances to impress potential mates, to establish territorial claims or to confirm potentially decades long bonding. Sandhill Cranes mate for life and the dancing is all part of the ritual.
Making Impressions

Every year from February to Early April these magnificent Sandhill Cranes migrate through the Great Plains headed for the north and they stop at the Platte River to feed and gain weight for the long journey. Approximately 500,000 cranes use this area during this time and forage during the day on the nearby farmer’s fields for various worms and bugs. At night they come back to the Platte River to sleep in a group to help protect themselves from predators such as bald eagles, coyotes, and bobcats.

Last Thursday I headed out to central Nebraska to view the Sandhill Cranes. At the Rowe Sanctuary just south of Gibbon they offer photo blind like the one below. In the early evening before the cranes arrive on the river, sanctuary volunteers take you out to the blind. From then until morning after the cranes leave you are to stay and not exit the blind. This allows great access to the birds as they will not get scared and they get very close. One downfall to being so close to the birds is that all through the night the cacophony of the birds can keep one awake! Luckily, I brought some soothing music and earbuds to help me sleep in my cozy double sleeping bags.

The photo blind on the Platte River.
The photo blind on the Platte River.
Inside of the photo blind on the Platte River.
The inside of the blind.

It was a great experience and I captured quite a few images of the cranes flying, dancing, and hanging out on the Platte. All images were captured with a Canon 50D or 5D Mark II and a Canon 500 f/4l lens. Additional Sandhill Crane photographs are available on my website in my Sandhill Crane Gallery.

A Sandhill Crane puffs his chest and spreads his wings to impress a potential mate on the Platte River in central Nebraska.
Chest Puff
A Sandhill Crane prepares to bed down for the night in the waters of the Platte River.
Standing Sandhill Crane
A strutting Sandhill Crane spreads its wings, letting the morning sun filter through the feathers.
The Strut
Two Sandhill Cranes Dance on a sandbar in the middle of the Platte River in the warm morning sun in early April.
Dancing on the Sandbar
A Sandhill Crane begins to run and prepares to take flight on the Platte River in central Nebraska.
Take Off
The oldest known fossil of a sandhill crane is from 9 million years ago. For longer than there have been sandhills in Nebraska this beautiful avian has taken to the skies and glided gracefully, migrating thousands of miles. This Sandhill Crane takes off from the Platte River. Each February through April hundreds of thousands of cranes migrate through the Platte River Valley in central Nebraska.
Morning Flight
A close-up image of a feather from a Sandhill Crane in central Nebraska.
Sandhill Crane Feather Detail
Every morning during its migration stop on the Platte River in central Nebraska, the Sandhill Crane takes flight and leaves the river in search of sustenance from the nearby fields.
Flight Plan
The Sandhill Crane, named for the sandhills of central Nebraska migrates every summer and fall stopping at the Platte River to gain precious pounds for the rest of the journey.
Awake From the Night’s Slumber
The oldest known fossil of a sandhill crane is from 9 million years ago. For longer than there have been sandhills in Nebraska this beautiful avian has taken to the skies and glided gracefully, migrating thousands of miles. This Sandhill Crane takes off from the Platte River. Each February through April hundreds of thousands of cranes migrate through the Platte River Valley in central Nebraska.
Morning Flight

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