Sandhill cranes are large, elegant migratory birds, often standing up to four feet tall with wingspans exceeding six feet. These birds sometimes cause conflicts for property owners near human developments. The common issues involve extensive damage to lawns and gardens as the birds forage, along with significant noise from their loud, rattling calls. Successfully managing their presence requires understanding their motivations and applying consistent, humane deterrence methods.
Identifying What Attracts Cranes
Cranes are attracted to properties by easily accessible food sources and a perception of safety. As omnivores, their diet includes plant materials like tubers, seeds, and grains, alongside small animals and insects. When they probe lawns, they search for soil-dwelling invertebrates, such as grubs and earthworms, often resulting in considerable turf damage. Water features and open spaces are also strong attractants, as cranes prefer to roost at night in shallow water, like ponds, where they are protected from ground predators. Large, open lawns offer clear sightlines to spot potential danger, providing a sense of security that encourages them to forage. Carelessly managed bird feeders that spill seeds onto the ground also provide a concentrated food source.
Implementing Physical Exclusion Methods
Physical barriers are effective because they prevent cranes from accessing vulnerable areas like gardens or newly seeded lawns. Cranes prefer to walk into a feeding area rather than fly over an obstacle, allowing property owners to utilize low, strategic fencing. A simple, taut perimeter fence made of thin, monofilament line or wire can deter them if placed at an appropriate height. Strands of thin wire or heavy-duty fishing line strung horizontally between 10 and 18 inches create a sufficient psychological and physical barrier; multiple strands spaced a few inches apart enhance this effect, making the area difficult for the large birds to navigate on foot. For high-value areas like vegetable patches or fish ponds, bird netting is a robust solution, which must be secured flush to the ground to prevent the cranes from walking underneath.
Utilizing Visual and Auditory Scare Tactics
Deterrence methods that appeal to the cranes’ senses work by creating an environment that feels unsafe or confusing, discouraging them from lingering. Visual deterrents rely on motion and reflection to startle the birds. These include installing reflective tape, Mylar balloons, or compact discs that spin and flash in the breeze. These devices should be placed high enough to be seen but must be moved every few days to prevent the birds from becoming accustomed to their presence.
Effigies that mimic natural predators, such as coyotes or large raptors, can also be utilized, but only if their positions are changed frequently. Cranes are intelligent and will quickly recognize a stationary object as harmless. Auditory deterrents, like specialized propane cannons or recordings of crane distress calls, can be effective when used sporadically and in combination with visual tools. The key to success with any scare tactic is unpredictability, ensuring that the cranes never feel entirely safe.
Legal Status and Habitat Management
Sandhill cranes are protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). It is strictly illegal to capture, injure, or kill the birds, or to disturb their nests or eggs, without a specific permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Property owners must rely exclusively on non-lethal management techniques, as no federal permit is required for humane deterrence.
Long-term management involves altering the habitat to make the property less attractive to the cranes. This begins by eliminating readily available food sources.
Eliminating Food Sources
Clean up spilled birdseed underneath feeders and treat lawns for excessive grub populations.
Altering Landscape Features
Draining areas of standing water or altering landscaping reduces large, open feeding and roosting areas. Replacing open lawns with denser, taller plantings or ground cover reduces the clear sightlines that cranes seek for security, making the area less appealing for foraging.