I Almost Ran over Them!

A picture I took of the big birds.

@akalinus (44366)

United States

August 7, 2016 2:07pm CST

I was on my way to church. I went down my street and started to turn on the corner. Two big birds walked right in front of my car and stood there looking at me. It was a good thing I was going slow. These are Sandhill Cranes. A pair of them lives in our park. They are protected and you cannot harm them or harass them in any way. I hate to think what would have happened to me if I hit them. The birds are almost four feet tall and always mate for life. Here is a photo I took of them another day. Today, they walked off before I could get my phone out. Did you have any close animal encounters in your car?

15 people like this

14 responses

@DianneN (254949)

• United States

7 Aug 16

Those are beautiful cranes. Here it can be a close encounter with a turtle, squirrel, fox, or dog walking neighbor. Lol! Never a dull moment.

2 people like this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

7 Aug 16

We have big old tortoises here. They live in burrows in the ground. I saw a turtle crossing a major highway during rush hour once. It is a miracle that it made it across six lanes of traffic.

1 person likes this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

8 Aug 16

Sounds like a laugh a minute, especially the dog walking neighbor.

1 person likes this

Claudia Kirkland

@CRK109 (14556)

• United States

10 Aug 16

Wow those are some BIG birds! Are they friendly? Besides making traffic stop, that is...

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@akalinus (44366)

• United States

10 Aug 16

They are like geese. Get their dander up and they attack. They can do a lot of damage to your car, house, or you. They are protected so the worst we do is take pictures. They pretty much go where they want and do as they please.

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@akalinus (44366)

• United States

10 Aug 16

@CRK109 I saw them chasing a little dog down the road one day.

1 person likes this

Claudia Kirkland

@CRK109 (14556)

• United States

10 Aug 16

@akalinus LOL! I suppose when you're bigger than the average bird, that's pretty much expected! I wish we had some of those around here. It would give my cat quite a shock to see! lol

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@13tyates (1606)

• United States

10 Aug 16

Oh no, sounds like they were asking for some pain. Fortunately I have had very few fun ins, and usually is just one swooping down and they almost always miss the car. I hope it stays that way.

1 person likes this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

10 Aug 16

Yes, I hate it when animals get hit.

1 person likes this

@xFiacre (14782)

• Ireland

7 Aug 16

@akalinus Its squirrels for me. We're infested with them.

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@akalinus (44366)

• United States

7 Aug 16

Good luck with that. They can be terribly destructive especially if they get in your ceiling. They got in the church ceiling once. During a service, a small section of ceiling dropped out. It was quite exciting.

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@xFiacre (14782)

• Ireland

7 Aug 16

@akalinus We have seagulls tapping on the roof in our church. We think that's what it is!

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@akalinus (44366)

• United States

7 Aug 16

@xFiacre We used to have a crazy bird who kept flying at the window. It saw its own reflection and thought it was a bird invading his territory.

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@responsiveme (22923)

• India

14 Aug 16

just yesterday there was this little black kitten sitting in the middle of the road, thankfully I saw her/him on time.

1 person likes this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

14 Aug 16

I wish animals would not sit in the street. Glad you did not hit the poor kitten and hope it learns to stay away from cars.

1 person likes this

@excellent10 (360)

• Israel

10 Aug 16

Oh how lucky not to run over them!

1 person likes this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

10 Aug 16

Yes, I am so glad that the speed limit is low in the park. I would feel so bad if I ran over one.

1 person likes this

@excellent10 (360)

• Israel

10 Aug 16

@akalinus Yes, I suppose it's very frightening I'm glad avoided disaster

1 person likes this

@GardenGerty (169406)

• United States

9 Aug 16

I have not had any encounters like that. I have seen wildlife by the side of the road, well, maybe I should correct that statement. A couple of weeks ago we were trying to find a route to a certain highway. We ended up in miles and miles of gravel roads and hills. We crested a hill and at the bottom, in the dip or valley, stood two deer, who just looked at us and did not even run.

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

9 Aug 16

I don't know why they stand there and look at your car. They all do it. It must have been a lovely sight to behold, though.

@marlina (154103)

• Canada

9 Aug 16

No, fortunately, never encountered animals with the car.

1 person likes this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

9 Aug 16

It is only a matter of time until something runs into your car or gets in front of it. Because that is what animals do. They like the smooth, clear road.

@Tampa_girl7 (54714)

• United States

8 Aug 16

Mostly we encounter deer , but also the occasional cow horse or pig.

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@akalinus (44366)

• United States

8 Aug 16

Something always seems to get in the road. There must be farms where you are.

@DaddyEvil (174208)

• United States

13 Aug 16

Great Blue Heron

Those birds look quite majestic, Jo Ann! I am glad you didn't hit them with your car! My first wife and I dug a stream bed and a small pond into our back yard. We had a pump installed in the pond that sent the water up and over a waterfall and down the stream into the pond, again... We stocked the stream and pond with medium sized Shubunkin and Fantail Goldfish. (Well, we stocked our stream and pond with those types the first time... Then a pair of Great Blue Herons came to visit us, ate the fish and left!) We stocked it with common Goldfish after that, just in case! It turned out to be a good thing, too! The Great Blue Herons showed up every few days to have the "snacks" we put out for them all summer! LOL! Let me see if I can find a picture of Great Blue Herons... It got kind of expensive to keep feeding that pair of Herons! I am sure they ate enough fish that I could have used that money to send their nestlings to college that summer! LOL! We sure enjoyed watching them fish our pond and stream, though!

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

13 Aug 16

They are magnificent birds. I have seen blue herons around marshes, lakes, and ponds in NY state. It always takes my breath away to see them standing there regally. They probably just at your goldfish, also. You provided for them very well and I am sure they were grateful.

1 person likes this

@moffittjc (128824)

• Gainesville, Florida

9 Aug 16

I love sandhill cranes! It's always beautiful when winter approaches and all of us here in Florida see the sandhills migrating down to visit us for the winter! Such a magnificent sight! And I'm glad you didn't hit those two birds...they may be the very ones who nest in the lake behind my house! lol

1 person likes this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

9 Aug 16

I see you are up north of me. I am in Pasco county.

@KristenH (33591)

• Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio

7 Aug 16

I don't drive. But I'm glad there weren't harmed.

1 person likes this

@JohnRoberts (109841)

• Los Angeles, California

7 Aug 16

The cranes really do look like they are standing on stilts. Those spindly sticks support their weight.

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

7 Aug 16

Yes, they do support their weight but it does not look like it.

@teresatrotter (4073)

• Jacksonville, Florida

8 Aug 16

Not close encounters.. But actual encounters. I have had deer hit me twice. And a white bird flew right into my car, and it looked like it was raining white feathers from heaven. Just broke my heart.

1 person likes this

@akalinus (44366)

• United States

8 Aug 16

That is a shame about the bird. A bird was flying on the highway the other day and hit our car window. Thank God, it managed to fly away. We thought it would come through the windshield.