Project Design
Facts About Reintroducing Whooping Cranes to Eastern North America
prepared 2001
The whooping crane is one of the best known endangered species. They symbolize the struggle to maintain the vanishing creatures of our world. The Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership, a group of federal, state and private agencies, is taking steps to reintroduce a migratory population of whooping cranes east of the Mississippi River.
Why
Is Reintroduction Being Conducted?
About 1,400 whooping cranes existed in 1860. Their population declined because of hunting and habitat loss until 1941 when the last migrating flock dwindled to an all-time low of 15 birds. The wild flock has slowly increased to over 180 in late 1999. This flock winters in and around Aransas National Wildlife Refuge on the Gulf coast of Texas. In spring, they migrate north, nesting in Wood Buffalo National Park, which straddles the border of Alberta and Northwest Territories in Canada. This flock of whooping cranes is the only naturally occurring wild population in the world. Scientists have long recognized the risk of having all of the wild whooping cranes using one wintering and breeding location. With all the wild birds concentrated in one small area, the population could be wiped out by disease, bad weather, or human impacts. Whooping crane survival depends on additional, separated populations.
Who Decides How Many Additional Populations Are Needed?
After a species is listed as threatened or endangered, the Endangered Species Act requires that a recovery plan be designed. A recovery plan is a blueprint that describes and ranks actions that are needed to improve population health of threatened and endangered species. The recovery plan for whooping cranes was developed by the International Whooping Crane Recovery Team, consisting of 5 specialists from Canada and 5 from the United States. Two additional flocks of 25 breeding pairs each will be needed to improve population health to the point that the status of the species could be down-listed from endangered to threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The Recovery Team has also decided that any new flocks should be established in areas where there is a very low chance of contacting the existing wild flock. This separation will minimize the possibility of disease transmission between newly established flocks and the existing whooping cranes.
How Were the Eastern Sites Selected?
A non-migratory flock has been reintroduced in the Kissimmee Prairie region of central Florida. Started in 1993, the flock has grown to over 80 birds. Most of those birds are young, but in the spring of 2000, wild whooping crane chicks hatched in Florida for the first time in 60 years. These chicks were lost to predation.
Wisconsin was considered for a new population for several reasons. Most importantly, the Wisconsin flock will be separated from other wild flocks. Additionally, suitable habitat on federal, state, and private lands is available. Wisconsin's long tradition of environmental commitment and public support, increases the chances for success within the state. Release site ivestigations were held in 1999 and selection was based on habitat analysis, local community support, and protection potential. In September 1999, the Whooping Crane Recovery Team selected Necedah National Wildlife Refuge for a test release using sandhill cranes in 2000. Deemed a success in the early spring of 2001, the project paved the way for whooping crane releases beginning in the summer of 2001.
Where do the Cranes for the Project Come From?
Three captive flocks produce cranes for reintroduction to the wild. These captive flocks are located at the International Crane Foundation (WI), Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (MD), and the Calgary Zoo (Canada).
How Will the Birds be Reintroduced?
This reintroduction project will require an estimated 10 to 15 year effort. The cranes will be hatched from eggs in laid captivity, then taken to the release site at the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge for acclimation to the wild. A costumed parent will teach them to forage, roost safely, and avoid humans, as well as other things crucial to their survival once they are released. The birds will be taught to follow costumed trainer in an ultralight aircraft. They will migrate using routes similar to wild sandhill cranes and eventually reach Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge in Florida, where they will spend the winter. The cranes will be monitored using radio and satellite telemetry equipment during the winter and as they migrate north unassisted the following spring.
What is the Goal?
The goal of this recovery project is a flock of 125 birds in Wisconsin by 2020, including 25 nesting pairs.
The Sandhill Crane Test Project
Before trying to reintroduce the rare whooping cranes with this method, the proposed techniques were tested using sandhill cranes. The successful techniques developed during the sandhill study helped determine the methods that will be used for whooping crane releases. During the first week of May 2000, eggs were collected from wild sandhill crane nests in Central Wisconsin. They eggs were shipped to Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland, where they were incubated and hatched. The chicks heard the sound of ultralight aircraft while still in their eggs. When they were less than two weeks old, they began to exercise by following the ultralight aircraft. Their exposure to the plane continued daily until they were shipped back to the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge on June 30 for acclimation to the Wisconsin release site. Flight training continued on refuge grasslands and wetlands until they were old enough to migrate south. On October 3, after mastering the art of flying and following an ultralight, the cranes made their way along the 1,250 mile migratory pathway. Eleven cranes reached their wintering location at Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge on the Florida Gulf Coast on November 11. The sandhills were monitored during the winter using field observations and electronic tracking equipment. On February 25, the flock began the return trip unassisted, successfully reaching the Necedah Refuge the end of April.
This phase of the project allowed biologists to refine a vital link in the reintroduction effort. In wild populations of cranes, chicks follow their parents south on the fall migration, then are able to return north the next spring on their own. When re-creating a population of whooping cranes, there are no adults available to lead the next generation on a migration. Humans have taken on the role of "surrogate parents," carefully selecting a migratory route and safely leading the cranes between chosen locations.
Whooping Cranes in the eastern United States!
The International Whooping Crane Recovery Team met in January 2001, and evaluated the sandhill crane test project. A decision was reached to proceed with a similar release of whooping cranes in 2001. Ten whooping crane chicks arrived at the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge on July 10. The rare whooping crane chicks were shipped via private aircraft from the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland. Before their release into pens on a secluded refuge marsh, the chicks underwent a rigorous medical examination. The young whooping cranes continued flight training behind an ultralight aircraft. As their wing muscles developed, they followed the small aircraft over central Wisconsin on progressively longer flights. On October 17, the unique flock began their fall migration. High winds, combined with fog and warm southern temperatures slowed their progress, but the first flock of 7 cranes arrived at Chassahowitzka NWR on December 3. They had been on the road 48 days and traveled 1,218 miles. They will spend their winter on a secluded marsh. Biologists will monitor them during the winter and on their unassisted trip back north in the spring.
Eastern Population Designation
Migratory whooping cranes reintroduced east of the Mississippi River are designated as "experimental" because they are isolated from other whooping crane populations. They are also "nonessential" because the survival of the species is not dependant on these individuals at this time. These designations relax the restrictions of the Endangered Species Act and lessen possible conflicts between people and whooping crane conservation. Whooping cranes are still fully covered under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. A public comment period was held to allow input on the proposed federal rule designating the flock as an "experimental, nonessential" population. The comments were incorporated into a final document that was sent to Washington, D.C.. Final approval to proceed with the reintroduction project was granted upon publication of the final rule on June 26, 2001. Prior to advancing with the project, two flyway councils, seven states directly on the flight path, and 13 adjacent states approved easements for the crane project.