Abandoned sandhill crane rescued
A sandhill crane got left in the dust by her flock of friends heading south. But with a little help, she may surprise her buddies by showing up at their rendezvous point, after all.
Nobody is sure why this enormous bird fell behind in this winter's migration. One minute, she was part of a group heading to New Mexico. Then she just took a little breather in Utah, and nobody waited! Hmph!
Second Chance Wildlife Rehab in Price, Utah
Second Chance Wildlife Rehab in Price, Utah, came to the rescue, checking her out to see whether a health problem could have led to her falling out of the flock. They gave her antibiotics and fattened her up -- always careful not to make friends with her, lest she become too domestic to go home to the wild.
Best Friends steps in
Next, Best Friends took her into its massive flight aviary to check out her flying skills, and make sure she'd regained strength enough to continue life outdoors. So far, so good.
Find out about Wild Friends at our Sanctuary
The Wildlife Center in New Mexico
Next stop? The Wildlife Center in New Mexico which will check her out one more time before seeking out her crane friends and letting her go back to them.
Boy, won't they be surprised to see her! It might make a good reality game show. "You cranes will never guess who's behind this curtain. It's someone you haven't seen since Utah!" Looks like this beautiful creature just needed a little modern transportation to get her where she was going -- to warmth!