Saturday, March 21, 2020

Sandhill Cranes and Tundra Swans

On our way back from Barrie we turned off the highway to check out the huge empty corn fields where we had seen the Sandhill Cranes last fall.  We were wondering if they congregated in the spring like they do in the fall.

Looking across this huge corn field I was sure I spotted a small group of Sandhill Cranes in the distance, looking like dark dots even through binoculars.

Similarly in this photo, I was sure I was taking a picture of a pair of the birds in the distance.  But no luck when I enlarged the pictures.

We drove some distance down the pothole-filled gravel road and then stopped beside another pair of birders.  They pointed out these Swans on the other side of the road.  We're looking at the west edge of the enormous Minesing Swamp here, one of the largest swamps in southern Ontario, which floods widely every spring.

We had seen the high water level earlier, where the highway crosses the Nottawsaga River.  The actual river is over beyond those trees on the right.

These Tundra Swans have already started pairing up, though further south you can see fields of thousands of them.  Tundra Swans mate for life.

With a heavily cropped photo, we did see a few Sandhill Cranes with a mixed flock of ducks and gulls in the far distance.

I was more surprised to spot a section of old pine stump fence!  Decades ago when I was growing up in Woodstock, Ontario, I read the story of these fences after seeing some in the townships east of town.  Archeologists have concluded that these represent former areas of White Pine forest, growing on sandy soils.  White Pine are an early successional species if growing naturally, so they concluded that these represent in turn former areas of native settlement.  Sandy soils would have been the easiest to clear for growing their staple crops of corn, beans and squash.  Archeological finds have confirmed this, leaving me wondering if there was native settlement nearby.  There are hardly any old pine stump fences left in Ontario now.

Meanwhile here on the home front a cold front went through late yesterday, leaving a dusting of that white stuff this morning.  But it's been a bright sunny day today and it's virtually gone now.


19 comments:

  1. Interesting about the pine stump fences. Just a few migratory birds returning here in the last few days.

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  2. The old pine stump is quite photogenic.

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  3. Intriguing to here about the past history of an area. We saw cranes when we visited the area in 2015. Our temperature dropped from about 27 to 11 yesterday. No snow but plenty of rain and clouds.

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  4. Thank you for your many posts that I have read and not commented. Always look forward each post. We have had a few days of sunshine and rain is forecast for several days. Blue sky and sunshine have been very welcome.
    Joy

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  5. We went bird watching this afternoon as well. All we saw were crows, ravens and a single red wing blackbird. :(

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  6. We had stump fences where stone was in short supply for building walls, sadly many of them were torn apart for lawn ornaments, others to make way for modern agriculture -- see my post https://forestandfield.blogspot.com/2016/08/stump-fence.html

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  7. The old pine stump looks a bit like driftwood.
    We had another cloudy dreary looking day but no rain or snow!

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  8. Well done spotting the cranes and the swans, both fabulous birds. Stay well during this awful Coronavirus we are all dealing with.

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  9. It felt like the wind here was from an iceberg today. The one place where we go to see the swans pairing up and nesting is closed due to this corona virus...I sure was wanting to go up there but guess we will be staying home.

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  10. Lovely photos, good spotting of the cranes.

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  11. Hello, I love just listening to the cranes, great sighting. Pretty shot of your yard with the dusting of snow. Take care! Enjoy your day, wishing you a great new week!

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  12. With our live Exeter Ontario weather feed which covers your area I can see when storms are upon you, when it's raining on the Furry Gnome, and when it's snowing. I figured maybe you had got some snow. Looks like Monday we may all get another dusting. I'll keep an eye on ya.

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  13. Glad there are more signs of Spring starting to appear.
    Enjoy the solitude as you stay Safe.

    It's about time.

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  14. Thanks for the swan pictures. And I've now grown quite used to seeing your front yard, now with a bit of snow. :-)

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  15. I had never heard of the pine stump fences! My mum planted the Winter Aconite many years ago and it has spread through her garden and even though she is gone it still comes back to remind us that spring is coming.

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  16. i love that old pine stump fence...what a beautiful piece of wood!! stay well my friend, new jersey is getting hit hard with covid19 and i am staying indoors!!!

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  17. We had snow last night also. I heard a Canada Goose honking the other day...sure hope spring comes soon:)

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  18. I love exploring near wetlands and seeing the wildlife. We do get tundra swans in Virginia in the winter but not the cranes as far as I know.

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  19. Interesting clip on the news last night. How wildlife are coming out in droves in Italy and other affected areas from the virus. They are reclaiming their space. Dolphins, ducks easily crossing roadways and swans enjoying the peacefulness of no human interactions.
    We sure woke up to a white wonderland this morning and it is still coming down. Blech!
    stay safe you two!

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