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Sandhill cranes take flight as the sun sets on Woodbridge Road in Lodi. (News-Sentinel file photo)

Sandhill Crane Festival

Annual event highlights endangered bird

By Lauren Nelson
News-Sentinel Staff Writer

The sun is setting over the vineyards and open fields on Woodbridge Road. Shades of orange, pink and lavender line the horizon, covering the silhouette of Mount Diablo in the distance. The night is chilly, silent except for the eerie bark of hundreds of sandhill cranes gliding over the shallow marsh area before landing. They line the water banks, scouring the ground and enjoying the scenery.

Ken and Nancy Nieland, too, stand on an overlook. They are holding binoculars to their eyes, smiling and pointing out strings of cranes flying in.

Across the street, rows of grapes stretch for acres, but there is not a crane to be seen.

Grape fields are not crane-friendly, said Ken Nieland, director of Micke Grove Zoo.

Neither are commercial and residential development.

For 10 years the married couple has helped bring awareness of crane endangerment with the annual Sandhill Crane Festival that takes place at Hutchins Street Square in Lodi. The Square is transformed into a hub for the event with bus tours to various natural habitats, family activities, an art show, workshops, storytelling, music and dance and wildlife demonstrations.

Sponsored largely by the Lodi Chamber of Commerce, the Sandhill Crane Festival usually brings in at least 1,200 visitors, most of whom are out-of-town guests.

From Lodi Lake to the Sacramento and Cosumnes rivers, sandhill cranes flock from these wetlands at sunrise and don't return until sunset.

During the day they graze in open fields, lurking for insects and grains. Though they seem content and carefree, these orange-headed birds are on a mission. They are migrating from their second homes in the northeast areas of California, eastern Oregon and even the Bering Sea in Siberia.

The degradation of wetlands and ravines are one of the largest threats to the endangered sandhill cranes.

Local preserves like the Woodbridge Wilderness and the Isenberg Crane Preserve and Cosumnes River Preserve help keep cranes returning every year.

Flooded wetlands may seem useless, but Ken Nieland who often canoes with his wife on the Cosumnes River for a chance to see the cranes up close, says the need for preservation is easily grasped when seeing the birds for the first time.

"Personally, I think people just kind of need to appreciate nature. It's spectacular when you see hundreds or thousands (of the cranes) together," he said. "When you see that they need to live in the flooded wetlands, they don't seem so useless. They provide wonderful habitats for animals."

And as the sun casts its final rays over the flatland, Ken and Nancy Nieland smile, pleased that before them is another season of opportunity to mingle with the majestic birds.

Sandhill Crane Festival 2007

This year’s festival runs from Nov. 2-3. Based at Hutchins Street Square, the event includes tours, vendors, art exhibits and more. For more information, visit the Lodi Chamber of Commerce’s Web site at http://www.lodichamber.com, or call the chamber at (209) 367-7840.

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