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Borrego Springs, CA

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Final crane sighting for the year?

For the last six weeks or so it seems that I have had to work the Visitor’s Center almost all of my workdays.  I really enjoy the VC one day a week, but three days every week gets a little B-O-R-I-N-G for me.  Several factors have contributed to this lackluster change in my assignment here.  Circumstances arose that required more time indoors.  I’m not complaining too much, I just wanted to set the stage for what occurred this morning. 

I had a visitor fairly early this morning that was hoping to see a crane (all visitor’s believe they’ll see one at the VC).  She had stopped here a number of times on her cross country trips trying to glimpse one.  I explained that it was breeding season; there are about 130 cranes spread out over 19,800 acres, and that the chances of spotting one at this time of the year was less than good.  She, of course, was very disappointed.

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As she was watching the refuge video, Doug came in to lead the 10:00 Birds and Buds trail hike.  I told him about her, and he asked if I’d like to take her out to try to see one of the cranes in a refuge vehicle. (He had seen one on his way into work) 

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Yahooie!!  You know I casually said, “Of course, Doug, if you want me to.”  Ya right!  We were out of there like a rocket on the 4th of July!  We drove about three miles to a horse pasture on the edge of the refuge property and found one of my favorite cranes.  We believe this was the female of the mated wild pair.  Experts are finding out that the male cranes probably do about 90% of the egg brooding, so it’s more likely to see a female feeding away from the nest.  She needs to spend more time feeding to build up her strength after producing the two eggs.

Notice she (?) has no leg bands.  That’s because both cranes of this pair were wild born, and have eluded capture by the biologists for over four years.  That’s the major reason I like this pair best.  Open-mouthed smile I have my own personal experience with a four footed ‘wild child’ that also prefers to escape capture.

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Doug and I call this the wild pair, but the biologists refer to them as the orange pair.  That’s because this pair is smart enough to really ‘paint’ themselves up with orange-ish mud on their feathers.  It acts as camouflage when they are brooding the eggs on the nest.  It was a thrill to see this bird for both me and the visitor.  It may well be my last sighting this year before I leave the refuge.  So long my friend, and I hope your youngster beats the odds!

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                                                                                THE END!!

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

26 comments:

  1. I know you must have been jumping for joy to get out with the wild things.

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  2. I'm glad to see your new header picture. The other one almost made me croak!

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  3. What a treat for you and your visitor.

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  4. What a lucky visitor!! You have given her a life memory! I LOVE the wild in those cranes. Hope I get to see them someday.

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  5. what great luck for you today, Judy!..hope that her babies survive and are at the refuge next year!

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  6. WOW, what a sight that must have been...maybe some day I too will get to see the wild pair:o)

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  7. You certainly go the extra mile for the visitors, I hope they appreciate what you do for them (for free!).

    Great picture and thanks for letting the frog header hop away. It reminded me of a boss I once had...

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  8. Oh how cool. I wondered why it was orange, so thanks for that explanation. So the lady wasn't the only visitor that got to see the crane, you showed her to us as well :-) Thank you.

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  9. Thanks for the pictures! So glad you escaped for a bit!

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  10. What a beautiful bird, I'd love to see her. The large birds with long legs are so graceful, and just spectacular when they fly. I'm glad you and your visitor got to see her.

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  11. What a great ending to the sightings!!

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  12. As always, Judy the Tour Guide Delivers!

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  13. Great capture of the Crane...glad ya'll got to see her!

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  14. So they had to crane their necks to see her?

    Where to next for you?

    Roxanne
    The Good Luck Duck

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  15. Your visitor must think you are the most awesome volunteer. Glad you both had a successful day! Love the header photo!

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  16. If you want to see a bird ... Just ask Judy!

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  17. Glad you got to get out of the Visitor's Center. Nice to know the males have to sit on the nest most of the time. ha.

    http://travelinglongdogs.blogspot.com

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  18. Oh wow - the wild bunch! She is striking w/ her colors. I believe I recognize where your pictures were taken, don't I? Congrats, too, on getting OUTDOORS... glad you could see one more crane.

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  19. What a great treat -- for both your visitor and you.

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  20. They are beautiful birds... I am so glad you had one more chance to see them, and I'll bet your visitor was thrilled to see them also. Happy Sunday!

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  21. Great post, very interesting how they "paint" themselves.

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  22. How interesting that they cover themselves with dirt to camouflage themselves while they sit on the nests!~ We have cranes that come and go in the field across from our house, and they squawk something awful and making quite a noise!

    ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
    Karen and Steve
    (Our Blog) RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard
    http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com/

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  23. What a find, great way to end your season there.

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  24. Judy, so glad you got to do a field trip and got some great photos of the crane!!
    How nice of he/she to give you a last glimpse before you move on down the road!

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  25. I'm so glad you were able to help this lady see the cranes.

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  26. Fascinating story! Love "The End" too.

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