Sandhill Cranes
Andy Rabin (andyrab@wam.umd.edu)
Sat, 12 Dec 1998 17:37:07 -0500 (EST)
After a somewhat disappointing morning of birding at Sandy Point State
Park (highlights: COMMON LOON, NORTHERN HARRIER, COMMON GOLDENEYES), Roger
& I headed back home via Rt 50. Near exit 16, Roger spotted a flock of
something flying overhead and he was pretty sure they weren't Canada
Geese, though they might have been swans of some kind. I went from 55 to
0 in about 5 seconds (O.K., maybe it was 70 to 0 but nobody can prove
anything!) and pulled off the road. We were desperate for some reward for
getting up so early and putting on our long undies. When we got out to
look at them there were five overhead and it was clear they weren't swans
or geese. Their grey wings and skinny outstretched legs and necks brought
to mind the message that someone posted yesterday about cranes being seen
somewhere north of here (Thanks for posting that message!). A quick look
in the field guide after they had passed over confirmed our suspicion.
They were SANDHILL CRANES- lifers for both of us.
The rest of the afternoon we spent searching in vain for more lifers.
Instead, we found a Greylag Goose where there was supposed to be a Greater
White-fronted Goose (at Black Hill Park near the boat ramp), and a
specimen of waterfowl at Gunners Lake in Germantown that can only be
described as being what you get when you put a Black Duck and a
Surf/White-winged Scoter hybrid into a blender for 2 minutes, pour into a
bowl and chill for 4 hours, then shape into a corpulent Ruddy Duck/Mallard
mongrel.
Serves 4-6.
Andy Rabin
Gaithersburg, MD
andyrab@wam.umd.edu
P.S. If anyone sees this duck at Gunner's Lake, Roger and I would be
interested to know what you think it is. Our best guess is that it's
essentially a Mallard whose parents may have had too much fun in the 60's.