Baby Sandhill Crane!
Thursday, May 07, 2009 Posted by Michael
For the first time in a month both adult Sandhill Cranes came into my backyard together, and they had two new little reddish brown fuzzballs with them. Just two proud parents out taking a little stroll with the kids.Baby Sandhill Cranes are called "Colts," and they look like ducklings but with longer legs, and HUGE feet like oversize clown shoes. Their little wings don't have any flying feathers yet, and they actually look more like flippers on a fish. When the little ones run around, they stick their "flippers" straight out like airplane wings to help them keep their balance.
The adults dig around in the ground looking for worms and grubs, or they will pick up a piece of dried whole kernel corn with their bill and feed it to the baby Cranes. Both little ones compete for food and attention by jumping up and down and flapping their little "flippers" as fast as they can. It's pretty clear their body language is saying . . . "Feed me! No Me! Me! Me! Me!" It's pretty hilarious, and they are very entertaining to watch.
Picture from Wikimedia
October 31, 2010 at 5:00 AM
That was sweet.