Mama Crane

Today we enjoyed a relaxing day by the poolside.  My mom and I ran to the store near sunset to grab some stuff for dinner.  When we were coming up the driveway, I heard the strangest horn sound.  Suddenly, I saw, right on the side of the road, a male sandhill crane, lifting his beak to the sky and crowing with all his might.  When we got inside, I grabbed my camera and Mia and I set out to find him.  As fast as we were, he was already gone. 

We walked around the grounds a bit in search.  We saw a hawk hunting something on the ground.  The hawk continued to repeat his dive and perch hunting routine as we encroached closer.  I was nearly satisfied with my feathery photo-shoot when a guy came up and mentioned to me that there was a female sandhill crane nesting right off the third dock.  I suddenly wondered if the crowing male was trying to draw this hawk away from it's mate.

I could not believe how close the female was to the pier.  I felt the eggs must be close to hatching as she spent about 10 minutes adjusting the straw and trying to comfortably lay on them.  Each time she was about to lay on them, something was not quite right and she would stand back up, touch her beak to the eggs, move a strand or two and then squat back down.  Mia ran off to fetch her some Spanish Moss to add and quietly left it on the railing.  The gentle perfection by which she tended to her nest was magical.  In fact, I believe that I found Orlando's true Magic Kingdom.  I hope a bird as beautiful as this can survive Florida's denial of it's fragile environmental state, lest it destroy the very "kingdom" which draws it's livelihood.