Whooping Crane Migration Update: May 8, 1997

Claudia Fonkert

To:	Journey North
From:	Tom Stehn, USFWS
Date:	May 7, 1997

"Dear Journey North,

"All the whooping cranes have headed north!

"I did a census flight May 6 and could not find any cranes. I'm always relieved when all the whooping cranes are on their way north. About once every 4-5 years, one or two whooping cranes will spend all summer at Aransas. We have no idea why this occurs, and always feared that it indicated some of the birds were sick or in poor condition and weren't in condition to migrate.

"Thirteen birds were still at Aransas on April 24, but all have headed out. The 13 were all non-breeding birds (ages 1-4 years old) and thus not on any timetable to get to the nesting grounds in Canada's Wood Buffalo National Park.

"My next chance to look at a whooping crane will be in June in Wood Buffalo National Park when I help the Canadian Whooping Crane Coordinator look for newly hatched chicks. A special airplane stationed in Albuquerque, New Mexico and flown by a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Pilot/Biologist will be used for the surveys. It has a glass "bubble" nose similar to a helicopter that provides great visibility to look for the small chicks which are about the size of a robin when they hatch. Right now some of the whooping cranes are sitting on eggs. I hope everyone will wish them the best of luck as they try to raise young this summer."

Cheers,

Tom Stehn
Refuge Biologist
Aransas National Wildlife Refuge

To:	Journey North
From:	Wally Jobman, USFWS
Date:	May 7, 1997

Dear Journey North,
"It appears that the U.S. portion of the migration has pretty much come to an end. Only two new sightings were reported during the past week, both from Kansas and probably of the same birds. The juvenile reported near Pingree, North Dakota, in last week's update is still at that location."

• Link to Today's Migration Data

Wally Jobman
USFWS
Grand Island, NE

The Next Whooping Crane Migration Update Will be Posted on May 15, 1997.