Listen to this!

You are listening to the sound of a Sandhill Crane.  One of the welcome signs of Spring is when you begin hearing these big and graceful birds.  I’ve seen them almost every day during the last week, a pair flying gracefully together.  Their distinctive call can be heard long before you see them.  I’m always looking madly at the sky in all directions, trying to discern which direction the call is coming from, hoping I can get them flying on film.    Some of the farmers don’t like them, understandably, because they eat their crops.  I read in Montana Outdoors that in the 1940’s the breeding range of the Rocky Mountain population of these birds dropped to 150 to 200 mating pairs due to unregulated hunting.  But current surveys show the population is up to 20,000 cranes – so amazing! They mate for life, which can be two decades or more. I love that!  It’s the most unique sound isn’t it?