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Meet
the 2006 Whooping Crane Chicks! Hatch-year 2006 of the Eastern Flock |
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Crane
# 28-06 DAR |
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| Date Hatched |
May 29, 2006 |
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| Gender |
Male |
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| Date of Photo: |
Egg Source: ICF |
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| Permanent
Leg Bands Left Leg: |
Right Leg: PTT |
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Personality and History
Before
Release
Marianne says #28-06 Is a good flyer. He seems to float
between hanging out with the older chicks as well as the younger ones.
He and #30-06 have had several battles for their place in the hierarchy.
Now #28-06 is once again dominant over 30.
Chick #28-06 often hangs out with #32-06. Of all the DAR chicks, 28 is the lightest in coloration right now. He still is cinnamon and white but the brown is lighter than it was earlier.
Oct. 4, 2006: The DAR chicks had their pre-release health checks.
Oct. 17, 2006: Dr. Richard Urbanek said the DAR birds received their permanent leg bands. Chick #28-06 and the other four will be released as soon as they get usedd to their new leg bands and transmitters. Their freedom is near! Will they hang out with, and then follow, the older whooping and sandhill cranes to learn their migration route?
October 21: Chick #28-06 (with #26-06) was set free on the Wisconsin refuge where it spent its first months of life. The two newly released chicks quickly returned to the pool in their rearing area, and remained there to roost. The next day they visited with the First Family, also at home on the refuge (until fall migration).
History
On October 28, DAR chick #28-06
left Wisconsin with #26-06 on their first migration!
but moving
too fast for the ground tracker! PTT readings from #28-06
for Oct. 29 and 30 showed him in southern Indiana! A roost
check on the night of 30 October confirmed that #26-06
and #28-06
stayed together. They were seen Oct. 31 and again Nov. 25
in Indiana, feeding mainly in harvested cornfields with
hundreds
of sandhill
cranes. On December 4 they continued migration to Hiwassee
Wildlife Refuge, in Tennessee. They left Hiwassee December
7 and were detected Dec. 8 in Florida. They are moving
around a bit, but staying in areas where
our Eastern flock spends the winter. They were with wintering
sandhill cranes in Pasco County at the end of December.
On Jan. 12 they flew to the Chass pen site for a quick
visit before flying off to a Lake
in Hernando County.
Spring
2007: Began migration (with #26-06)
from Pasco County, FL on March 24.
They flew to
Thomas County, Georgia that day. They roosted in Tennessee
on the nights of March 25 and 26. They were grounded
by rain and poor migrating conditions in Daviess County, Indiana for the rest
of
the
week.
On
April 1 the two separated. DAR 26-06 remained behind while DAR 28-06 continued
migration
to
Pulaski County, IN. He left there on April 17. On 19 April 19 he was detected
in flight in south-central Wisconsin. April 20 he continued
northwestward and roosted in Olmsted County, Minnesota.
He returned to Wisconsin on April 21 and rreturned to Necedah
NWR on April 23. He roosted that night with #307 and W1-06.
Fall 2007: DAR 28-06 (with 27-06) began migration on Nov. 5 and made it all the way to Jasper-Pulaski FWA, Indiana on the first day. By Nov. 12, they arrived on the wintering area in Pasco County, Florida. They were the first Florida arrivals in the flock this winter!
Spring
2008: Dar 28-06 was still on winter territory
in Pasco County, Florida on March 22, and arrived on
Necedah NWR (with DAR 27-06) on April 3! He wandered
a great deal but on May 17 he returned to
a Juneau County location where he remained with #27-06.
Last updated: 5/20/08
Back to "Meet the Flock 2006"
Journey North is pleased to feature this educational
adventure made possible by the Whooping
Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP).