Posted on

episode 1,104SANDHILL CRANES – 4300 LIVE HERE – 95,OOO STOP TO REST AT SPOTS LIKE LOING POINT -TOTAL POPULATION IS 450,,000 – SHOULD HUNTERS START KILLING THEM?




EPISODE 1,1O4:  SANDHILL CRANES – 4300 LIVE HERE – 95,OOO STOP AT REST SPOTS LIKE LOING POINT -TOTAL POPULATION IS 450,000 – SHOULD HUNTERS START KILLING THEM?

alan skeoch
sept. 13, 2024


Sandhill crane in flight at the Llano Seco Unit of the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex, California, USA



“Dad, four huge birds were eating grain dropped by the combine harvester.. I Checked
them out.  They are SANDHILL CRANES.  When they stand erect they are almost as 
tall as humans.  All four took off making a gobbling noise.”
“Wonder if I can get a look at them?”
“Doubt it Dad. They saw me before I saw them…took off immediately.  Try the back field.”

Result?   No sign of the Cranes even though I drove the Kubota through all the fields most of
which were now covered with red clover plants. also Must be lots of grain dropped by the combine
harvester.

“SURVIVAL?” … SURVIVAL IS A QUESTION

I Have never seen a Sandhill Crane even though 95,000 of them live or pass through
Ontario each year.  I am 86 years old and an amateur naturalist which means I love
nature but have no easy answer to the survival of Sandhill Cranes.  I do not grow
wheat, oats. or barley.

What is known about Sandhill Cranes?
– nearly became extinct from over hunting but seem to have rebounded as there
are now around 95,000 visiting Ontario each year.   4300 were counted at Long Point
on Lake Erie.  The total population in Canada is around 450,000.
-Right now they are protected but pressure from farmers may result in a change.
Why?  Because flocks of sandhill cranes devastate some grain fields particularly in Northern
Ontario.  Losses of grain on some fields are as high as 50%.
-Sandhill crane nests usually have only two eggs but only one hatching survives.
Of late the population has grown about 4% per year.
-Nestng sites are always close to wetlands.  Big nests of dry reeds and even burdock.
-They eat almost anything including frogs and snakes but grain seeds
are their favourite food.
-preditors are raccoons and other carnivores which are driven away by adult cranes using their
feet.  
-24 cranes are wearing collars in an effort to determine if population of cranes
should be ‘harvested’ (which means shot)
-Breeding sites are mostly in the northern tundra.
-wintering sites are as far south as Florida and Texas where they gather in thousands.
-wingspan as much as 7 feet

-they remain aloft for hours

-considered a prize by hunters as they weigh as much as ten pounds

-Skeoch family sitings on Fifth Line, wellington county – Andrew saw and photographed four sandhill cranes
      -Alan Skeoch saw none because the cranes saw him first it seems.

alan skeochSandhill crane in flight at the Llano Seco Unit of the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex, California, USAupload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/Grus_canadensis_in_flight-2618.jpg/400px-Grus_canadensis_in_flight-2618.jpg 2x” data-file-width=”3646″ data-file-height=”2051″>
sept. 13, 2024




HERE IS THE QUESTION…IS CULLING THE FLOCK A QUESTION OF SURVIVAL?

Should we allow hunters to kill sandhill cranes…one crane per hunter?
Consider that they mate for life.  Shoot a crane and leave the mate to fly alone.
Consider that each pair of sandhill cranes produce one hatchling per year.
Consider that predation by raccoons, coyotes, foxes, eagles, disease, loss of wetlands
already is a natural check on population growth.
Consider that I have never seen a sandhill crane but would like to do so.
Consider that I do not make my living by growing grain
Weigh the checks and balances carefully
We are considering a road trip to Long Point.





On a mid-February morning at Big Creek National Wildlife Area, which encompasses 771 hectares on the north shores of Lake Erie, eastern sandhill cranes patrol the icy surface of a marsh. The large grey birds with red-splashed foreheads take off, swooping one way, then another, and the air fills with squeaky chatter. They land in a field and scratch for grain. 
Sandhill cranes are no strangers to the area, which sits at the base of the Long Point peninsula, a 40-kilometre sand spit that’s a little more than an hour’s drive from London. It’s one of Ontario’s most important staging areas for bird migration. What’s unusual, though, is that they’re here now. Typically, the migrating birds visit briefly in the fall and early winter before continuing toward the American Midwest and, sometimes, as far south as Florida. But, this year, thousands have remained — there are roughly 4,300 today, according to a Canadian Wildlife Service count.



Posted on

EPOSODE 1,101: TIRE COUNTING: BIG RIGS HAVE 22, 24, EVEN 26 OR MORE TIRES






I AM a tire counter.  How utterly boring!  Right, maybe, but consider
the cost of those tires.  Perhaps $500 per tire which amounts to $11,000
for a 22 wheeler.  No wonder these huge machines dominate the roads.
They pay their way

Here is a picture of a 22 wheeler hauling fluid of some kind.  Fliuds slosh
around.   The weight on the tires must vary making the truck dangerous.
Yet I have never seen a huge rig upset.  Rollovers are usually 18 wheelers.
Why is that?

Dad was a truck tire builder.  Big Strong men were needed to construct
truck tires.   He qualified and was proud of his work.  The day
he reTIREd  Eric and I visited the Dunlop factory in Whitby
and actually saw dad building a truck tire.   Impressive.  He slapped
great lengths of heavy rubber on a spinning wheel. Vulcanized I imagine whatever that means.
Real pure rubber tires were reserved for aircraft because real rubber
can take the stress of a B52 trying to land on a Norad  airstrip in
Minot, North Dakota. Loaded with atomic bombs.  Or the stress
of an airbus loaded with people like us.

alan

P.s.  This is the second version of the tire counting habit. The first
version was longer but I hit the wrong button on my computer..
Perhaps a story about rubber will come next.
Posted on

EPISODE 1,100; WHAT TO DO TODAY? SALVATION ARMY STORE




EPISODE  1,100;   WHAT TO DO TODAY? SALVATION ARMY STORE

alan skeoch
september 5, 2024

“What can we Do today?”
“How about a trip to the Salvation Army second hand store?”
“Dad, maybe the zoo would be a better idea”
“Why?”
“Because that shirt makes you look like  a turtle “
“A turtle;?”
“Where did you get that shirt Dad?”
“Marjorie bought it for me at the Salvation Army store.”
“Will they take it back?”
“Let’s find out.”

And so this fragment of the Skeoch brood took a trip to the Sally Ann …Salvation Army store.
Why send this story?  Because A trip to the Salvation Army is fun and now my green turtle shirt could be
on the men’s rack…extra large.   Then again I might keep the green shirt.  Turtles have tough shells 
that resist insults.   

alan


” alt=”IMG_4093.jpg” class=”Apple-web-attachment” apple-inline=”yes” style=”opacity: 1;” src=”https://alanskeoch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/671AA235-B6E7-43E1-BFFB-967C6F7929AF-rotated.jpeg”>