Fantastic Feathered Family

A pair of sandhill cranes has been coming to our family property for a number of years now. The first few seasons, they tried to raise a family and failed, but for the last three years, they have had success. First a they had single youngster, last year they raised a pair of chicks and this year they had another single baby. 

They have gotten used to us doing things around the property, so they don't immediately fly off. In fact, when my brother seeded the big field with wheat and rye, they stuck around the edges and ate the little piles of seeds that dropped when the hopper was filled. The picture above is one of the parents. It has that beautiful, bright red face. 

They also like to poke around in the newly grown wheat/rye grass, so I get to see them when I go out to take care of various chores. Junior is facing left, with buff colored feathers on the face. (The picture above made me smile - it almost looked like a three headed bird.) 

Here, one of the parents (left) is facing off with Junior, who is just as tall, but just a little lighter color and with no red on the face. 

There's been a second (unsuccessful) pair for the last couple years, but they're still very shy of us, so I haven't gotten any pictures of them - they're always in the air and flying away by the time my camera is on and ready to focus. 

It's always a delight to see these beautiful, tall birds.

Fungus for Fun

I'm still away from the usual haunts and resources, but Piper and I have seen some marvelous mushrooms on our rambles. I'll leave identification chores to BetsyLee and the rest of you guys, since I don't have any books with me. (My brother is doing well, by the way.)

This enormous polypore is growing on a maple tree. It's huge - bigger around than dinner plates. 

This one looked like the awning over a fairy dwelling to me. It's very close to the ground and has wedged itself where there's a crease in the trunk. 

Piper did a little photo bombing with this Indian pipe fungus. 

These little guys were cute, providing some contrast with the browns and greens on the forest floor. 

Birds nest fungus are always fun to find, too. They aren't very big, but they're unusual and interesting. 

There will be more later on, but I managed to get these prepared and sized for uploading. :)