Q: I am wondering if you can help me with something. I have been searching the Internet for hours now trying to find information on Sand Cranes. Well, I think they are Sand Cranes. The ones I have are in Ocala, Florida, on our lake. There are two groups: one with 3 birds and one with 2. Everything I have found doesn't sound as if they are as common as I think they are. These birds are very friendly, so I can get pretty close to them, feed them corn, and they will even dance if you play music for them. I wanted to know if this is unusual and also about whether the group of 3 is a family and the group of two is a couple. I cannot find any information on these birds. I am a fairly recent bird watcher. I am truly loving birds. I would like to find a way to learn more about the birds of Florida. Would I do this with your magazine? Please let me know that and also how I can learn more about Sand Cranes. -- Thank You, Bobbie Wiseman

A: Hello, Bobbie: Thanks for your question and the entertaining thought-image of these cranes dancing to music! Delightful.

What you are likely seeing are called sandhill cranes. They can stand up to 4 feet tall and have red heads. They are very common in central and southern (but not extreme southern) Florida, but they do have an exotic aura about them, so that may be why you're not finding information about their being common. I believe they migrate north and south, but many sandhill cranes do stay in Florida year-round.

I have never seen sandhill cranes dancing, but then I have never seen them around music. And they do accept handouts. One time while traveling, I saw a pair of them standing around at a suburban strip mall -- just outside the pet store, and near the Publix.

(By the way, you might not want a 4-foot bird -- or any wild animal -- becoming dependent on your generosity. I have known rangers to put out cracked corn for birds when food resources are scarce, but the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has banned feeding these birds and other wildlife, effective May 2002. People caught feeding them can face fines and jail time.)

The group of 2 sandhill cranes you see is likely a couple. Sandhill cranes mate for life. So if you see one by itself, it likely has lost its mate, I'm told. The group of 3 could be a family. The mother and father sandhill cranes both care for their young. Juvenile sandhill cranes, big as they are, can't fly until a certain age, and so the parents stay earthbound until the young learn to fly. Often, you might see large groups of these birds hanging out together. The largest group I've ever seen was about 23 birds on the southwestern shore of Lake Kissimmee. I'm sure someone else out there has seen a larger group.

EcoFlorida does feature birds, and we provide information for birdwatchers in our articles. Our spring issue featured an article on the Florida scrub jay and the kinds of birds you can see at Myakka River State Park, a wonderful place to watch birds. Our summer issue, due to come out soon, also features an article on Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, and the kinds of birds you can see there (including your spoonbills and pelicans -- both brown and white).

I think the best way to get started with birding is just to go out and do it! Here are some tips:

• Take along a pair of binoculars and a good field guide like Stokes Beginner's Guide to Birds (Eastern Region) and / or National Audubon Society Field Guide to Florida.
  
  
• Many state parks and refuges offer ranger-led bird hikes, which is another great way to learn. Local chapters of the Audubon Society and the Florida Trail Association also have group birding walks from time to time.
  
  
• The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission offers a birding program called Wings Over Florida, in which members are identified by the number of birds they've identified.
  
  
• You might want to keep track of which birds you've seen, and where and when. Some birders keep a journal. Others just use checklists that are in the back of some field guides.
  
  

Hope these ideas help, and have fun! Watching wildlife is rewarding, and birds are the most easily seen kind of wildlife. Luckily for those of us in Florida, there are so many kinds of birds to watch.

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