Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership

February 2010 Project Update

PDF Version

February 2010 Population Status

As of early February 2010 there are approximately 85 wild birds in the Eastern Migratory Whooping Crane population, consisting of 48 males and 37 females. The most recent known locations of all birds are shown in the map below, with the exception of 7 at undetermined locations, and 7 long-term missing. Distribution included 26 birds in Florida, 3 in Georgia, 4 in South Carolina, 6 in Alabama, 1 in Mississippi, 15 in Tennessee, 8 in Kentucky, and 8 in Indiana.

2009 Ultralight Cohort

Photo of an open wired pen with two costumed handlers and six whooping cranes.

First-year whooping cranes spend the winter in and near open pens like this one at St. Mark's National Wildlife Refuge in Florida.

Subsequent to our previous update, the 20 cranes led to Florida behind ultralight aircraft completed their first migration. The 10 birds destined for the wintering site at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) arrived on January 13, and the 10 remaining young whooping cranes arrived at their wintering destination at Chassahowitzka NWR on January 20. Soon after their arrival, each of the two groups of cranes received health checks and permanent bands and transmitters. Each group of young cranes were retained in a top-netted enclosure at each site for a brief period of acclimation before release, and are now free to explore the habitats in the vicinity of their open pens. All birds will be monitored throughout the winter, until they depart on their own for the migration back to Wisconsin.

2009 Direct Autumn Release (DAR) Cohort

Of the nine birds released using the DAR technique this year, all continue to associate with older whooping cranes. The latest information indicates seven birds located in Kentucky, one bird in Indiana, and one in Florida.

Reporting Sightings

Please forward any sightings you receive to us through the whooping crane reporting web site we have established for that purpose: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/whoopingcrane/sightings/sightingform.cfm

The link above provides a public reporting form on a site maintained by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). When a report is submitted, the information goes simultaneously to multiple partners including the biologists who are tracking the birds, FWS, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, International Crane Foundation, and Operation Migration.

This update is a product of the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership. To access our previous project updates and additional information on the project visit our web site at http://www.bringbackthecranes.org/.

Map showing location of whooping cranes February 2010.

Back to "Project History" page

Last updated: February 3, 2010