Darrel K. Whipple wrote:
>
> Dear Tweets,
>
> I'm enjoying the flocks of sandhills flying southward and eastward over my
> house this week. They come in low over the trees from the Columbia River,
> and I am waiting for them because they announce their coming with their
> distinctive (and to me very pleasing) vocalizations. (Has someone
> incorporated these calls into a relaxation tape?)
>
> When they get to my place they probably see there is even higher ground
> ahead of them, so they start circling upward on thermals, babbling most of
> the time.
>
> Yesterday I counted a group of 22 and a group of 3. Today three groups in
> succession that totaled 44.
>
> Darrel Whipple
> Rainier, Oregon
> dwhipple at columbia-center.org
------------------------------

...............They should be arriving at Ridgefield NWR, and at
Sauvie's Island and surrounding areas near Portland and Vancouver, where
they will rest and feed for about a month before continuing southwards.
...............I, too, find their 'kroooooo' or 'garooo-a' sounds most
soothing and melodious.....sounds that I go out to the refuge just to
hear. Wait till you get(in some years)Tundra Swans and Canada Geese
arriving at the same time. All 3 species with their calls provide quite
an awesome symphony of sounds.

Gerald Hamilton
Brush Prairie, Wash.
gerald at e-z.net