Orange Crane

[Arthur Morris]

I have seen lots of Sandhill Cranes with rusty feathers. Not sure of the cause.... But I had never seen a positively orange one until this morning.

Image created with the handheld Canon 400mm DO IS lens with the EOS-1D MIV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop set manually: 1/1600 at f/5.6.

[Arthur Morris]

Here is a close-up view of the bird's breast created with the same gear at 1/400 sec at f/11.

[Steve Large]

Hi Artie,
Great find on this one. I'm no expert but it could be something like what happens to Western Tanagers out here on the west coast. They don't have the chemical present in their body naturally to create the red color in their head which is the feature about the male that really stands out. The pigment results from their diet of pine beatles during mating season found only in their breeding areas. Perhaps this crane is eating something on a regular basis that provides a particular chemical which promotes the orange feathers. Just my two cents worth.

Take care,

Steve

[Michael Wolf]

Outstanding capture of this unique Crane!

Why did you not crop out the water line on top of the image?
I think it accentuates the orange on the bird even more with the crop.

[Arthur Morris]

Outstanding capture of this unique Crane! Why did you not crop out the water line on top of the image? I think it accentuates the orange on the bird even more with the crop.

I generally like a strip of color top and bottom when I can get it. If I cropped the water completely it would be a bit too tight for me. Cropping 1/3 to 1/2 of it is surely an option.

[denise ippolito]

Artie, Beautiful colors on the Crane. I like the sharp details and the soft BG tones. I like the pose-it shows off the back feathers nicely:)

[Layton E Parham]

The shadow on the upper right leg ,along with the bright area below catches my eye. The color of the bird could be from excess Orange consumption? But I like it!:D

[Joe Senzatimore]

Love the beautiful pastel color and the great comp. as well.

[John Haig]

That is one rusty crane, Art...are you sure it's not the Florida Orange Growers new marketing idea?

Everything I've read and heard attributes the rusty coloration to staining from iron or tannin rich waters, the stain being transferred when the bird preens/feeds. From personal experience, the local breeding cranes on Manitoulin Island (in Lake Huron) tend to be somewhat less heavily stained than the further-north breeding ones that join them in migration...perhaps because the island is largely limestone? But then so is FL, to the best of my knowledge....

[Grace Scalzo]

Beautiful bird, graceful pose and that color is delightful. To be honest tho, that blue strip on the top makes my eye want to drift away from the bird. Were this image mine (I wish!) I'd quick mask a bit of the green up there, trim it and call it done. THere's also a spot or something in the blue under the bird's tail.

[Myer Bornstein]

To me the two blue strips are bothersome and I would get rid of the top one. Do not know about the orange color, but it is in Florida and there are oranges:D

[Jeff Cashdollar]

Nice detail for HH the entire kit. Love the habitat, I can go either way with the top water.

[Rick Moran]

Unique color, nice pose, cloning out the sky or water line on top would help a lot.