New Egypt 12/24--Sandhill Crane

My first (and probably last) year bird of the month. I have had a difficult yet ultimately rewarding relationship with Sandhill Cranes in New Jersey. It was after I got fed up with going to Somerset County to look for the flock that everyone else seems to find with no problem that Shari and I went to New Egypt to look for the cranes in the cattle pasture and stumbled upon the Northern Lapwings a few years ago. I have yet to find them in Somerset County, where again they were reported off and on the last few months; in fact, this year, I didn't even try. Nor have I ever seen them in Salem County, though I don't get to Salem County much. I have hunted for them along a road in Monmouth County: no dice. I have been back to the New Egypt pastures a number of times this year, superstitiously looking for the cranes of old and of course, have not seen them.

So, when I saw that Scott, fresh from our sighting of the Greater White-fronted Geese yesterday, had found 2 cranes in a field in New Egypt, a couple of miles north, as the crane flies, from the pasture, I determined to make a pass of that field this morning. There wasn't much traffic on the road, so I drove slowly, looking into the empty fields. When I saw a few puddles in the field, I mentally noted that they might be worth a look next fall for grasspipers--getting grasspipers in Ocean County is always preferable to Monmouth or Mercer.

I looked into my rear view mirror and damn! a truck was coming up on me pretty quickly. Just as I stepped on the gas, I saw something standing up in the field. I pulled over to the shoulder, put the bins up, and there they were--one feeding, one keeping watch. They were certainly cranes, but after I looked at them for a while I was bothered that they had no red caps. Instead their faces and foreheads were black. Could they be a hybrid with Common Crane; it is not unknown to occur in New Jersey. My Sibley's wasn't much help, but later, at home, I saw that immature birds have the black facial pattern, so I was relieved that the sighting was legit.

I didn't put out an alert, because, as I was looking at Sibley's, the birds disappeared. Whether flew off or walked into the woods I don't know. They seemed to get a little nervous when I scoped them. Cranes are in the area, but there a lot of fields to look at.