Cranes. 



Order, Paludicolae. 

 Family, Gruidae. 



206. SANDHILL CRANE. Grus Mexicana. Forty-four inches 

 long with red skin conspicuous on Its head. Its plumage is gray, 

 wings darkest. Its beak is long and sharp. Legs very long for wa- 

 ding. 



204. WHOOPING CRANE. (White Crane.) Grus Americana. 

 Fifty inches long. It has white plumage with black wing-feathers. 

 Like the sandhill crane it has red skin on its head. Legs very v long 

 for wading. 



SANDHILL CRANE. 



To be wandering along the edge of an inland lake and sudden- 

 ly see the neck of a sandhill crane rise out of the rushes is an ex- 

 perience that will never be forgotten. There is something snaky 

 about it. The bird itself is almost a freak of nature, absolutely 

 without grace yet suggestive enough to appeal to the orientals 

 along with the dragon as means of expressing their artistic feel- 

 ings. They always look best on a cloisonne vase. Last year at 

 Lake Andes flocks of them were seen flying in single file, their 

 long necks piercing the air and their long legs dragging almost 

 horizontally behind them. Great numbers of them are often seen 

 during their migration sailing very high in the air and shrieking 

 a note that will almost give you the shivers. 



They are fighters of the highest order and use their long 

 pointed beaks as spears, often driving them clear through the 

 bodies of their enemies. In the sandhills of Nebraska, the in- 

 habitants prize them as a table luxury, claiming that their flesh is 

 savory especially in the fall. Surely one of them would make a 

 meal for the neighbors. 



With all their awkwardness they are an aristocratic look- 

 ing bird. You respect their size and they are credited with hay- 



