Sandhill Crane On a foggy day the wings are working well, with one of many runs and take-offs. Age, about 70 days. |
Sandhill Crane Showing good form, legs together and trailing as some elevation is gained. |
Sandhill Crane A great height of maybe eight or ten feet at the top of the flight of almost a hundred feet. |
Sandhill Crane After turning and landing, then hopping and flapping back toward the adults. |
Sandhill Crane Some dancing comes next, hopping up and down in a circle, flapping for height. |
Sandhill Crane An adult definitely likes the idea of dancing, something else to learn when growing up. |
Sandhill Crane The juvenile and one of the adults danced around each other. Exciting for both. |
Sandhill Crane The juvenile doesn't know why it's exciting, but wants more dancing as the adult skips away. |
Sandhill Crane Chasing in earnest. More. More. |
Sandhill Crane The dancing adult pivots near the other adult, who is stirred up a bit, yet not part of it. |
Sandhill Crane Still, spinning around, everyone has wings flared out and taking part. |
Sandhill Crane The juvenile is persistent about more dancing. |
Sandhill Crane The parent turns to oblige. |
Sandhill Crane Back to circling and hopping straight up with strong flaps and great wing displays. |
Sandhill Crane The adult shows off a good hop and flap. |
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Sandhill CraneSandhill Crane The adult shows off a good hop and flap. Throw in a few low bows to mix it up. |
Sandhill Crane The adult spins away with the juvenile gladly following. All very thrilling. |
Sandhill Crane Then a big mix-up as all three weave back and forth and doing flapping runs. |
Sandhill Crane The adult tries to start winding things down before the excitement becomes too much. |
Sandhill Crane Wings folded, the adult conveys calmness and all-doneness. |
Sandhill Crane The juvenile is having none of that. All the extra energy has to go into another flight. |
Sandhill Crane Not much of one, but with the hops and flaps in between, it covers ground rapidly. |
Sandhill Crane Getting airborne without a lot of height, but high enough for a few flaps. |
Sandhill Crane The legs are trailing behind in excellent form good for a longer flight when the time comes. |
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Oh my, what an incredible sequence. What a show that must have been. Have you experienced anything more thrilling?
ReplyDeleteThe adult was getting a bit jazzed up, too, as its neck feathers were all ruffled.
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