Congress of Birds = Super Committee

On the day the Super Committee of the US CONgress (opposite of PROgress :^) failed to reach a compromise on solving the US Debt Crisis, another kind of Congress, birds of a different feather, gathered in, around, and over the pond behind my home in The Villages, FL.

The special gathering of birds seems to have been initiated a day or two ago when there was a heavy rain. That event seems to have stirred something up that attracted lots of birds to our pond.

Click on the YouTube video and enjoy.

Ira Glickstein

Mating Dance for the Birds

Every year we get to see a family of Sand Hill Cranes behind our home. A male and female and their offspring walk and squawk around the golf course pond.

This week we had a real treat when a pair did their mating dance for us immediately behind our house. Fortunately, my wife and I were photographing them as they got into the dancing mood.

These are good sized birds, three to four feet tall with wingspans of five to seven feet! They seem unconcerned as they walk around, often coming quite close. If you walk towards them, they will back away or fly off.



Several minutes after we went out to see them and take some photos, they began weaving their bills towards each other and jumping and charging in a very impressive mating dance!

(Or perhaps it was merely a domestic dispute? :^)

Quite impressive!

[Click on photos to make them larger.]

Ira Glickstein