Pennsylvania Game News - October 2008 - 22

flurry ensues as LMO Jerry Bish and the FCC crew check hunting licenses, duck stamps and HIP licenses, and dole out badges to hunt in the coveted duck areas, J and L. They also draw goose blind assignments for the hunters who’ve been selected through the public drawing in the Controlled Goose Hunting Area. On Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from October through January, Bish and the crew process up to 160 hunters for goose blinds and 90 duck hunters. The diversity of bird life at Pymatuning is incredible, ranging from shorebirds, ducks and geese that migrate through during the year from all parts of the United States, Canada and southern tropics. Bald eagles, hawks and owls are also regulars that can be observed soaring loftily above the fields and perched in trees in search of prey. Bird enthusiasts find this area a gold mine of viewing opportunities the year round, and their dedication is quite evident, as their cameras and spotting scopes rival the cost of some of the finest firearms in the world. One warm pleasant September afternoon I was patrolling through the Controlled Goose Hunting Area when I stopped to check out some strangely familiar birds. Through my binoculars they resembled great blue herons, but I couldn’t recall ever seeing great blues congregating in cornfields. Great blue herons are water birds and are usually seen standing statuesque-like in the shallows, watching for a fish or frog to pluck out of the water. The birds in the cornfield, five of them, started to walk off and were making a rattling, garrrooooo, garrrooooo, garrrooooo, garrroooo. It was then that I identified them, but I couldn’t believe my eyes as I’d never seen this bird here before. I drove down to the FCC headquarters about a mile away to see Mark Kahrer, FCC Game Lands Maintenance Supervisor. “Mark, tell me I’m not seeing things up off of Wilson Road. You know, the birds that look like great blue herons.” Mark turned with a smile and mimicked, garrroooo, garrrooooo, garrroooo.” He chuckled, “Mario, the sandhill cranes arrived here a day or two ago, five of them, and they’ve been all over the management area garrrooooing.” I later spoke to Bish and he said that although sandhill cranes are generally a bird of the Central Plains, a few nesting pairs have found their way to Crawford County. I told him that they have a vocalization you’ll never forget and he laughed and agreed. Deputy John L. Ittel and I were on foot patrol, early on October 28, 2005, checking hunters in the goose blinds. The temperature was in the high 20s and a skiff of snow was on the ground. We’d just checked a group of hunters who were having a great day, having harvested a couple of Canada geese. As we walked away, a voice from within the blind said, “Hey, you guys might want to check that GAME NEWS 22

Pennsylvania Game News - October 2008

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