I have been spending time during the early part of this year in Florida, enjoying the warmer weather and some of the birds that we don’t see frequently up in New Jersey. The most visible of these species has to be Sandhill Cranes, which stroll across the yard, and are nesting and raising young at different stages within the village. I thought that I’d share some of the photos here, showing their progress.
Sandhill Cranes build a low large stick nest, high enough to keep the eggs dry and out of the marsh.
One evening she stood up to reveal two large eggs. Two eggs are the norm for Sandhills.
Then there was a little bit of egg maneuvering before incubating them again.
Two days after hatching the fuzzy chicks left the nest and the marsh to explore their new world.
Hey ma, let’s go this way!
It’s feeding time!
It’s not too long before they are nearing the size of the parents, but still sporting that rusty juvenile color.