Successful birds

[grassfarmer]

Not directly a beef topic but I was so happy to see a young bird today I thought I'd share. We have had a couple of visiting sandhill cranes over the last 6 years or so. Initially they came and went through the summer but the last few years they have settled near a restored pond we made. For the last three years it seemed they were trying to raise a family but were being constantly pestered by red wing blackbirds that also live in that wetland. I had never seen anything as aggressive as these things - constantly dive-
bombing the cranes and I'm sure forcing them off their eggs. Well finally today I see they are walking about with a young one - a fluffy, gangly version of its parents, already probably 14 inches high - and the red wing blackbirds are still pestering them!

[15444]

Both of those birds are pains in the ass. Try herding yearlings with cranes squawking or checking fence along a creek infested with red-wings. Robins, orioles and owls are about the only birds I can tolerate.

[farmgal71]

Hi Grassfarmer,
Nice story, I am seeing more cranes as well.

We also have a couple of big hawks the past couple of years, one flew near me the other day, scared the **** out of me but was just flying to the top of a pole.

They seem to be having a good life living on rodents etc which is fine with me.

[kato]

We don't gat cranes here, but one time many years ago, one of our cats actually dragged a baby Great Blue Heron into our porch! I have no idea how he did it, because it was also a pretty big bird. Maybe he thought we would help him out with it. The chick didn't seem hurt at all, so we fed him a couple of minnows, locked up the cat, and released him out at the dugout. He was gone in the morning, and had enough feathers to fly, so hopefully he found his way back to his parents.

As for blackbirds, my sister has a bunch at her place that drive the magpies away. I wouldn't mind having some close to our yard. Squawking magpies at 4 a.m. are no fun at all.

[food4u]

How about a very noisy cheerful wren at 4:30 in the morning...