Sandhill Crane

Grus canadensis (Linnaeus)

Petʰoⁿ qude (Umónhon)

The Sandhill Crane is one of the main clan animals of the Ojibwe of Minnesota. Ojibwe author Gerald Vizenor’s autobiography is largely the story of being an urban, mixed-up mixed-blood boy, largely divested of his tribal heritage; and yet when the troubled teen retreats under a St. Paul bridge one night, he invokes his family’s clan relationship with the bird: “[t]he tricksters soared in magical flight over the woodland, and the crane must have sounded in my dream that night” (Interior Landscapes). “Cranes are associated with good luck in many Native American tribes. Native fishermen, especially, used to consider it a good omen to see a crane while fishing. In some Native American folklore, Crane plays the role of peacemaker. In others, he is notable for his vanity. To the Ojibwe tribes, cranes represented leadership and skill at speaking, and the Cheyennes associated sandhill cranes with lightning.” (Native American Crane Mythology)