Photo: Marianne Wellington	Meet the 2009 DAR Whooping Crane Chicks!
	Crane DAR #32-09
	Date Hatched	May 25 , 2009
	Gender	Female
	Pre-Migr. Weight: 6.0 Kg	Egg Source: ICF
	Permanent Leg Bands	Left Leg G/PTT Right Leg W/R  PTT
	Read more about the raising and naming of the DAR chicks. *Scroll to bottom for most recent history.*

Personality
DAR 32-09 was the first DAR chick to hatch this year. She has been the dominant chick and terrified #33-09 several times when they were younger. We have been able to exercise the two oldest chicks together since they were over a month of age. They spent both days and nights together for a week and a half before they were transferred to Necedah NWR. Since the move to Necedah, it is more apparent that they tolerate each other, but they really haven’t become best buddies even though they spend all day and night together. They will go to each other for security if something scares them, but most of the time they are doing their own thing. She has a blue band on her right leg until permanent bands are attached before release on the refuge for fall migration.

By August 19, the oldest chick, #32-09, was gliding above the ground for 100 ft. or so. At first she did short flights so she could stick around the costume. Her flying attracts the attention of a nearby pair of adult Whooping cranes (#211 and #217) who fly over to see who is in the area. So far it has not been an issue of territory, but all the chicks are wary of the adult pair being close by. The first in the DAR group to fly, she was a strong flyer by the end of August.

October weather brought sun, wind, rain and snow. The chicks seemed to enjoy testing their wings in the winds. Several days they birds made flights where they were almost out of view flying both to the north and south of their pen site. A couple of times they were out of view for a period of time, and someof the flew over to visit the ultralight chicks in their pen! We couldn't tell which chicks did that because they didn't get banded until Oct. 13. They are building up their flight strength in these final days or weeks before migration.

Notes by Marianne Wellington, ICF. Thank you!

Fall 2009: She was released at Site 3 on Necedah NWR on October 24 along with DAR 38-09. They roosted there that night and stayed in that area the rest of October. On November 1 they joined with all but two of the other DAR chicks and flew in undirected flight over Monroe and Juneau Counties. Are they getting restless? Will they soon follow the older adult cranes to learn the migration route, as experts hope they will?

Migration History

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