The beautiful eye of a Sandhill Crane

Cropped to get rid of the metal fencing, but I couldn't avoid the shadow of it. A group of us had the privilege of seeing very rare Whooping Cranes as well as Sandhill Cranes at the Calgary Zoo Ranch, also known as the Devonian Wildlife Conservation Centre, located about 10 kilometers south of Calgary near DeWinton. Taken on October 8th. I have seen Sandhill Cranes in the wild three or four times, but always so far in the distance. Much as I wish this bird was flying free and could be photographed in the wild, its captivity does allow us to see it in close detail. Just love their beautiful, orange eyes. Also, sometimes these Sandhill Cranes are given the rare Whooping Cranes' eggs to hatch at the Ranch, which is a very valuable service.