A Few Sandhill Crane Images I Find Interesting

This past March I spent some time with migrating Sandhill Cranes near Capitol Reef National Park.

 

sandhill crane 9651 ron dudley

1/1000, f/8, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in

It was a joy to watch them fly into their feeding grounds and boy do they know how to fly in tandem.  Pairs of birds were often so close to each other in the air that you’d swear they were going to crash and burn.

 

 

sandhill crane 9652 ron dudley

1/1000, f/8, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, canvas added for composition, not baited, set up or called in

In the next frame it appears that the birds were almost touching.  It’s hard to tell precisely how close they were to each other but I have little depth of field with the 500mm lens and these birds are both sharp so that tells me something.

 

 

sandhill crane 0734 ron dudley

1/2000, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM, not baited, set up or called in

But tranquility in the air often morphed into aggression and pandemonium on the ground.  At first glance it may look like these birds are just taking off but they’re not.  The crane on the left is attacking the second bird who is attempting to escape.  I thought the poses of each bird exemplified what was going on with each one.  I got quite a few shots of the chase and neither bird ever left the ground more than a few inches but I thought this one was the best of the bunch.

Ron

 

12 Comments

  1. Talk about team work, these are beautiful images, both in flight and at take-off! Merry Christmas and Happy new Year with many shooting opportunities.

  2. What beautiful shots Ron, thanks for sharing! Have a wonderful Christmas!

  3. Never have I seen such fine photographs of Sandhills in flight! Pure elegance!!

  4. The choreography of those aerial dances is sublime.
    Thanks Ron.
    And pecking order has teeth in the avian world doesn’t it?

  5. Lovely Ron…From what I understand these Cranes are along the Calif. coast this time of year, but I live in the high desert. So never have seen them. Looks like a trip is in store!

  6. I have never gotten to see these birds, but I think I would enjoy them if I did. The behavior in the last photo reminds me of what Canada Geese do all the time. I’ve spent a lot of time with Canada Geese, and have always enjoyed them.

  7. I love the sandhills – and I love watching them here in New Mexico. These are neat shots, Ron.

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