THE WHOOPING CRANE REPORT: 29 |
Photo USGS |
Visit our new Whooper Report Site Map and find out what you've been missing!
Did you know that we have 8 web pages of General Information, 24 different Whooping Crane Chick Reports, and 29 different Whooper Reports? There's lots of information, photos, and videos packed on these individual web pages, so check out our new site map, look over the topics, and find out what you've been missing.
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Photo, Brian Clauss, USGS There are 20 older birds from the two previous WCEP releases. Three of them have already completed their fall migration, arriving at Chassahowitzka NWR in Florida this past weekend. Two of these birds are from the Class of 2002, Cranes #3 and #15, so this is their first unassisted migration back to Florida from Wisconsin. They completed the migration in only seven days. The third bird was Crane #1 from the Class of 2001. This bird migrated primarily with sandhills or by himself. He is currently in Pasco County in Florida where he spent last winter. Most of the birds from the previous releases are on their way to the Florida and eight of them from the 2002 release are traveling together. |
Weather prevented this year's WCEP migration from starting before October 16th, but since then the birds and their ultralight "parents" have traveled 577 miles. At the moment they're parked in Adair Co. Kentucky, waiting out heavy storm warnings. Fall weather always plays a major factor in the fall migration; sometimes conditions aren't right for the ultralights and sometimes they're not right for the birds. But safety for both the pilots and the chicks must be the first consideration. Daily updates and pictures of this year's ultralight migration can be found on Operation Migration's website in their Field Journal. Pictures and information on the individual chicks can be found at the Class of '03's Bio Sheet. A map following the progress of the migration can be found at: http://www.bringbackthecranes.org/where/index.htm More updates and information on the WCEP project can be found at: Find out where the previously released birds are at: http://www.savingcranes.org/about/whats_new/. Information about the final destination of the migration is at the Chassahowitzka NWR site. |
At Necedah NWR, older WCEP whoopers from previous migrations sometimes interact with costumed technicians and this year's chicks in-training. This year, two older birds joined up with the ultralight chicks for a brief period during the actual migration before going their own way. Photo, Brian Clauss, USGS |
Florida Update! The two chicks fledged by the non-migratory whoopers in Florida have been sexed. One is female, and one is male. Lucky's parents were one of the pairs who fledged a chick, and this year they raised a female. More information about this year's production in Florida and the status of the non-migratory whoopers can be found on the Whooping Crane Conservation Association's website under Flock Status. Also look under their newsletter articles for more information and photos. See our Crane Videos!
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Click here to ask questions about Patuxent's whooping crane program. And don't forget to check out our new SITE MAP to learn more about our previously published whooper reports. Please check our site on January 15th for a web page update!
Whooping Crane Reports7 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Hatch Day (Click on numbered links to view all other egg (negative numbers) and chick days).
Other Patuxent Crane Information