Last Sunday I visited the park that started my interest in birds, Colonial Park in Franklin Township, New Jersey. I did not have very high hopes for seeing birds, but wanted to visit that park, for the first time, while I was a birder. The best bird sighting, however, happened on the way to the park – as we were heading toward the intersection of Mettlers and Weston Roads, I spotted Cranes foraging in a corn field. We stopped the car behind some junipers, as to not disturb the birds and got out to take some photos.
We counted twelve individuals, including one juvenile. This turned out to be a high count for this area. In the past, a group of Cranes were often seen a couple of miles north of that area in a field that is now planted with soybeans. Since they do not eat soybeans, they had found this new field that we just happened to pass by at the right time.
Below are some photos of the birds as they moved down the field.
Juvenile Crane (far right) with the adults
Juvenile Crane (far right) with the adults
