Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis) Watches from Amongst Yellow Blooms
One of our more recent discoveries that has become a favorite place is the Sandy Ridge Reservation of Lorain County Metro Parks. A wetland surrounded by super-highways, industrial plants, and new suburban development, the place is a haven for all manner of wildlife … most especially, birds. While I’m only posting the one image (above) today, we were enthralled yesterday by the beauty and behavior of several Great Egrets, the statuesque poses of a couple of Great Blue Herons, and a pair of Sandhill Cranes that were patrolling drier areas between open water and the pedestrian path. The weather was excellent for our visit — high 70s and low humidity — though all around us were hints of coloration more reminiscent of fall. The day felt like summer but looked like autumn.
PhotonStopper 
Sandhills are one of my all-time favorite birds. I’m eagerly awaiting their arrival back in my part of the world via migration, however brief their stay.
I saw my first Sandhill Cranes only last year in the same location … possibly the same mated pair! Very interesting to watch these birds as I’m used to be big waders like egrets and herons being in the water, the Sandhills, I’ve only seen on land. In fact, the first Sandhills I saw were walking side-by-side on the pedestrian path around the wetland area! Beautiful, fascinating birds that, I’ve also been told, can be very aggressive to suburban residents in their winter migratory homes.
I love the noises they make. Where we used to live, we had two to four pairs living in nearby livestock grazing pastures any given summer. I loved listening to them in the evenings.
Sandhills mostly eat grain and bugs, so you won’t see them hunting in open water for fish like a heron would. They especially love corn, I’ve heard.
I don’t think I’d want to take on an angry crane. The darn Canada geese are bad enough!
The pair we saw were, indeed, hunting for “bugs;” I think I saw one of them catch a large grasshopper … there were many around to choose from!