Archives

Weather: Wind, with rain moving in.

The winds are out of the south today at 10-15 mph and just to provide a bit of variety, it appears as if there may be rain moving in to the area.

Below is a report that clears up the mystery about why bird #9, a bird that had trained with the ultralights during the summer, did not go on the migration. Besides being fun to read, the report gives us a little insight into the day to day activities of biologists working with the whooping cranes.

The Story of Whooping Crane #9

By Jennifer Rabuck, Park Ranger at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge

Working on this project for two years has been very exciting. As a member of the Outreach Team, I know how important it is that these cranes remain isolated from human contact. I was unexpectedly given an up-close look at the project, from a priviledged perspective I never thought I'd have.

Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP) biologists, pilots and costumed aviculturists were waiting for appropriate weather to lead a small flock of rare whooping cranes on the long-awaited southern migration. Records were kept on each chick and a review was conducted to determine the final flock slated for departure.

Whooping crane #9 in her pen at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by USFWS; Jennifer Rabuck.

Before the chicks left Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland, two of the cranes suffered wing injuries. No. 9, a female, and No. 4, a male, were both treated for the minor problems.

When the flock arrived at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin, WCEP team members were optimistic about their potential success in the study. In captivity, it is difficult to get cranes with this type of injury to recover. They usually can't exercise and develop muscles that help control their wings. Being included in this study actually increases their chances of recovery: they are able to exercise and strengthen their wings by flying almost daily and using those muscles.

It appeared that things were working out for the two birds. Both seemed to heal and hold their wings more naturally against their bodies. Both took flight. As training time in the air grew progressively longer to build endurance, the future looked bright for them. Then No. 9 began to drop out of the daily training behind the ultralight and return to the marsh below, as her flockmates continued on. This new behavior occurred more and more consistantly, but always after about the same amount of flight time.

On September 11 (a fateful day that none of us will forget), WCEP veterinarians conducted a pre-migration health check and placed identification bands and radio telemetry transmitters on each crane. It was discovered that No. 9 had major problems with her flight feathers. They were obviously deformed and showed many fault bars and stress lines, which are weaknesses in the feathers.

This is the left wing of #9. The arrow is pointing to one of the stress lines on a flight feather.   Photo by Barry Hartup, International Crane Foundation

To make matters worse for No. 9, she was very submissive. When the other birds showed dominance, she cowered and eventually ended up secluded from the flock. This could have been a side effect due to the timing of her injury, as it occurred during important periods of socialization and flock development.

No. 4 faired better, apparently healed and not physically impaired. His temperament was also different as he reacted more aggressively to the other cranes. As a result, he was able to stay with the flock physically by increasing his endurance, and remain with them socially, achieving both vital parts of flock membership.

No.4 will depart on the migration with the remaining 7 cranes. No. 9, however, will not. It is estimated that it could take a few years for new, healthy feathers to replace those slowly molted, allowing her to become fully functional in the air. The very nature of this study makes her an unsuccessful candidate for reintroduction since the crane's first migratory flight is the one they mimic thereafter.

There are two paths that a crane removed from this study could follow: join a captive propagation center, or be transferred to an educational facility. No. 9's genetic messaging passed on from her parents is over-represented in the non-migratory flock. This would make her release there less than optimum as should might eventually pair with a sibling. She is slated to go to the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans to be included with another whooping crane in an educational exhibit.

No. 9 had never seen a human without a costume. She had never heard a human voice. As a display bird at the zoo, she will be very close to people and non-natural things. This crane had been kept as wild as possible and now must be prepared to handle the exact opposite.

I was asked to assist with her taming process. I went with Dan Sprague, a USGS Biologist responsible for hatching and rearing the cranes. Dan was in costume to provide a familiar "face" and to be able to approach her if needed without adding stress. Having worked for many days preparing the site for the cranes' arrival, then not returning to the actual site for several months, it felt strange to be on the rearing site. Knowing a rare whooping crane was just on the other side of the fence, I felt out of place. I was breaking the protocol that is so vital to this project - and that was what I was supposed to do. Dan opened the pen and walked in. After removing his hood and getting no real reaction, he told me to come into the pen. When I cleared the fencing, I saw the beautiful crane in her marsh environment. Dan told me she showed the most dominance he had ever seen from her. She held her head up very high and showed displaced aggression by pulling at weeds in the water. She kept her distance, and watched me intently. I was in the pen less than 10 minutes, but by the time I left, she was almost ignoring me. It was that quick and simple to undo so much that the biologists had worked for, all the protocol had safe-guarded. My presence there was an honor, while I knew that she could never go back to being a wild, release-able bird after our encounter.

No. 9 will help the reintroduction effort. While her flockmates will be literally laying the groundwork that will form the foundation of this new population, she will play another role. No. 9 will join the WCEP Outreach Team and help us communicate about the plight of the whooping crane and the efforts of the partners to restore them into the eastern United States.

Previous Update - Next Update

Back

Home