Service Agents Secure $85,000 in Restitution for Endangered Whooping Crane Killing
February 14, 2013
A man who admitted shooting an adult male whooping crane near Miller, South Dakota, last April pleaded guilty to violating the Endangered Species Act and was ordered to pay $85,000 in restitution and spend two years on probation. He must also forfeit the rifle used to kill the crane and will be barred from hunting, fishing or trapping anywhere in the United States for two years. Photo Caption: Whooping cranes are one of the rarest birds in the world. Although Service conservation efforts have kept the species from becoming extinct, the current population totals only 600 individuals. Credit: USFWS News Release (DOJ)