In-the-Reeds Reunion

Verona, Wisconsin, April 2015. We watched the cranes for nearly two months.

Tending the Nest

Verona, Wisconsin, April 26, 2015. It's important to keep the area tidy.

Easterscapes, in Three Takes

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Suburban Chicago, Spring 1965 or 1966. My Best Friend's Mom, Louise, decorated the house for every holiday.

A Last-Minute Project

Suburban Chicago, March 1970. Happy Easter everyone. (Here's a color image from the same day.)

Many-Species Reunion

Verona, Wisconsin, May 3, 2015. Here's another image from one of last year's goose chases.

The ducks didn't mind the commotion.

Waiting

Verona, Wisconsin, March 2015. Last year, the crane pair started nesting in our backyard on March 19. We're waiting to see if they return. I still wonder if something bad didn't happen to the family last year.

A Sous Chef

Duck!

Verona, Wisconsin, May 2, 2015. Let's film them while they're getting along.

Rye Bread

Suburban Chicago, April 1974. My Dad's twin sister, Jonė, enjoys breakfast while we share a joke.

She's eating a soft-boiled egg. We serve soft-boiled eggs in egg cups. It used to be difficult to find egg cups, but now, they are common.

Melancholy

Verona, Wisconsin, May 14, 2015. I didn't walk down to the pond when the cranes were nesting.

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An eggshell from the sweet hatching still rests in the reeds.

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What did I learn in the last two months? (1) Birds do "feather their nests;" (2) birds keep chicks "under their wings;" and (3) when the chicks leave, one does get an "empty nest" feeling.

Hatched

I wondered yesterday whether the Sandhill Crane chicks weren't about to arrive. The eggs hatched today, and two auburn chicks appeared.

Mama Crane spent most of the morning standing next to, not on, the nest. By early afternoon, she began to clear egg shells.

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Verona, Wisconsin, May 5, 2015. For a time, she sat on the nest. Papa Crane then roused her.

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Verona, Wisconsin, May 5, 2015. When Mama Crane stood up, we could see one chick at her feet.

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Verona, Wisconsin, May 5, 2015. Later, we saw the two chicks.

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Verona, Wisconsin, March 2015. When a Crane Chick asks, "Mama, where did I come from?" Mama Crane can think back to this day.

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ADDED: Here's one:

Goose Chase

Verona, Wisconsin, May 3, 2015. We've been watching the crane couple for more than a month, and I wonder if hatching time approaches. The gestation time for Sandhill Crane eggs is 29 to 32 days; we saw the first mating dance on March 25. Papa Crane has grown more territorial with the problem goose. That makes me think the arrival time for the chicks is near.

Flight

Verona, Wisconsin, April 2015. Mama Crane turns the eggs, and Papa Crane makes his rounds.

Cooperation

Verona, Wisconsin, April 2015. Papa Crane guards the nest as Mama Crane again turns the eggs.

We talk about the goose ...

... in Lithuanian:

Verona, Wisconsin, April 25, 2015. I say, "That goose is a problem." I hear my American accent when I listen to myself speak in Lithuanian.

She checks the eggs again.

Verona, Wisconsin, April 2015. Mama Crane continues her routine.

Dramatic Reunion

Verona, Wisconsin, April 22, 2015. A long-haired cat lurked around the pond this afternoon. Mama Crane grew rattled. And we had snow flurries.

(You can see the eggs during a few scenes here.)

We prefer geese not frequent our pond.

Verona, Wisconsin, April 20, 2015. We tolerate some feathered friends, but others should not approach our nest.

Turning the Eggs, in Three* Takes

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Verona, Wisconsin, April 2105. Mama Crane does this several times a day.

Then she sits down:

*Plus one.

They get along.

Verona, Wisconsin, April 2015. Mama Crane sits on the nest as the duck plunges for frogs.