I guess you all read that the tornadoes killed the latest flock of whooping cranes that were led down here by an ultra light airplane. It was the first year that they all made the trip from Wisconsin unharmed. The bright side is that we have a breeding pair of sandhills on our lake. They are gregarious and walk through our yard almost every day. If they do not see us on the porch the big male will come up and look in the glass door. They are not afraid of dogs, cats, or people, although they will fly if they lose the stare down. I had a stone mason here last year and he said he walked right through the family to get to his ladder and they just looked at him. These birds were rare when we first moved here. Now they are plentiful. I have seen groups of 50 or more in the field next to our church. That is impressive because they stand close to 5 ft tall. They are also very loud. The picture is from the net. I'll get one of ours if anyone is interested. jim
