That is a different sort of problem, John. Do you have a dog? I have to try to keep cats out of my grden, but never cranes, of course.
kay

Yes, we have an Irish Setter. Unfortunately, the yard isn't fenced, so she's an inside dog.

From my own experience with cranes, I live on a farm and see them in the back fields, I know that cranes always post a few sentinels to watch for any signs of danger. If they see anything move (here its coyotes or wolves) they sound an alarm and you can see the whole flock take off. Have you considered putting something out there that would move, scaring the cranes away? That might scare them off from landing in the first place.

I've thought about that. Actually, I went outside two or three times and shooed them away, but they came back each time. Around here, they seem to have very little fear of humans. Some time later, they'd moved into the field next to the house, and I had to run an errand. Before I did, I drove straight at them fast enough to make them take flight.

I really, really hated to do that because we love to watch them. They're such fascinating creatures.

However, I've got too much time (and money) invested in my daylily beds to allow them to come to harm.

John

I think the trick would be to keep them from landing in the first place. Maybe put a remote controlled toy out there and control it from the house? That way you could turn it on when you see the cranes coming in for a landing.

Interesting idea, but who has time to stand watch all day? Sorry, I couldn't resist.

I think the toy would have to somehow be automated. Hmm.....

Try for the energizer bunny! LOL

Go to a hunting store and get a bow hunting target coyote, bobcat or Florida panther model. Also use sounds of the coyote or panther playing on a tape player.

I see a lot of good Ideas here, and i really like the hunting target, I think the toy or target, whichever you use would be effective if it was hooked to a motion detector, then you wouldn't have to stay outside and watch for them..

Chiming in late, but a commercial property I managed for years was recently sold, and the property inspector found woodpecker holes in the back corner of the building. Apparently a woodpecker would hammer there regularly. The tenant on that corner never told me about it because they actually liked the noise!

Anyway, I had the damage repaired and bought a cheap bird repellent kit at the h/w store. It had a couple brackets with mylar ribbons that blow all around in the wind. It did work to scare the woodpecker away!

Maybe you could put mylar ribbons on some poles? Some people say they've had good luck using pin wheels to scare the critters off.

Ribbons and animal statues sound like good solutions. On the other hand, we love to watch the Bluebirds playing in our birdbath, as they often do, sometimes four or five at a time. I need to come up with a solution that will keep the cranes away without disturbing the other species.

I bought a contraption called ScareCrow from Amazon to chase off my hosta digging raccoons. It attaches to a water hose. There's a beam or something that detects larger animals - when the beam is broken, it sends out a strong jet of water. The thing sprays water in a circle for a minute or two and stops. The only problem is you have to leave it hooked up and the water on. Be careful not to soak yourself!

There's a simpler way to keep the Raccoons from digging. It's called Shake Away, which is a small container of granules made from the urine of Coyotes. After our first episode with Raccoons digging up newly planted plants, I invested less than $20 in a container and we sprinkled it on the beds. Works like a charm. Those pesky critters recognize the scent of a predator and stay the heck away.

I found it at a local feed/fertilizer store, but it's also available on Amazon.

I just ordered two of these to keep hawks away in order to protect our little dogs, maybe these will help with the cranes; I also love watching the cranes. We recently got a fence in the back yard; I can still hear the cranes but can't see them now; hoping they will come into the yard but not sure if they will. https://www.collectionsetc.com/product/hooting-brown-owl-solar-garden-stake.aspx?utm_source=EMAIL&utm_medium=EMAIL&utm_campaign=6DZYY3C

This is also one I ordered: https://www.collectionsetc.com/product/hooting-white-owl-solar-garden-stake.aspx?xsell=A1

Lowe's has this one online: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Dalen-Great-Horned-Owl-Scarecrow-1-Count-Plastic-Bird-Repellent-Decoy/1000124947

Try ecohawk@talktalk.net as they make fibreglass hawks and falcons along with fibreglass scarecrows