General Information
Sandhill cranes, the most abundant of the world’s cranes, are found throughout most of North America. They spend most of the year in Canada and the northern United States, migrating to the southern United States and Mexico for the winter. In Ohio, sandhill cranes are listed as an endangered species due to habitat loss. The Ohio Division of Wildlife continues to try and attract sandhill crane populations to the state by restoring their preferred habitats of wetland and grassland.
Small numbers of breeding sandhill cranes have been present in Ohio since 1985. The number of nesting cranes has steadily increased over the last few years. Sandhill cranes can be seen migrating through the state each fall to spend winter down south and then each spring to start nesting preparations. Nests are built on the ground in a mound of vegetation, and two young are usually born each year. The young stay with their parents for about 10 months. They start breeding at about 3–5 years old, when they reach sexual maturity and find mates of their own.
Sandhill cranes are monogamous. Mating pairs frequently perform dancing displays during courtship. Cranes will leap and frolic while circling each other and calling back and forth.
Meet Our Sandhill Cranes
Two sandhill cranes, Niles and Daphne, live in the Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center & Woods Garden—Presented by KeyBank at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
Niles
Niles the sandhill crane was born in spring 2013. He was found alone at a Michigan truck stop collecting insects off of truck radiator grills. He was brought to Howell Nature Center in Howell, Michigan. Staff tried to introduce Niles to other sandhill cranes, hoping to help him bond with others of his species. This introduction was unsuccessful, and Niles was too tame to be released into the wild. Niles found a forever home at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in July 2014 and spends his days on exhibit in the Perkins Wildlife Center.
Daphne
Daphne the sandhill crane was born in spring 2011. She was brought into the Howell Nature Center in Howell, Michigan, with a fractured right wing in January 2014. The damage to her wing could not be repaired, and she was no longer fully flighted. After being deemed unreleasable, she was placed in her permanent home at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Daphne can now be seen in the Perkins Wildlife Center.
Lifespan
Wild: 20–30 years
Captivity: ~60 years
Fun Facts