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RETURN OF THE WHOOPING CRANE TO THE EASTERN UNITED STATES

Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge, Florida is winter home of the next migratory flock of whooping cranes

The whooping crane is North America's tallest bird, up to five feet tall and has a seven-foot wing span. Whooping cranes are an endangered species and are protected by federal law.

There are three wild flocks of whooping cranes in North America, all managed by International Treaty. The international partnerships between Canada and the United States form a partnership of governmental and private groups working together to save the species from extinction.

The three flocks of whooping cranes include:
  • Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Texas / Wood Buffalo National Park, Northwest Territory Canada. Aransas NWR/ Wood Buffalo had the last group of wild whooping cranes existing in the world in 1937 with 15 birds. Today the population is up to 184 cranes and increasing every year. This is the only self–sustaining wild population and represents half the total wild population.
  • Florida non–migratory flock. Introduced in 1993 in Kissimmee lake region to establish a non-migratory flock. This group successfully had a breeding pair raise the first crane born in eastern US in over 100 years in 2002. There are 94 cranes (spring 2003) in this group.
  • Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge, Florida/ Necedah National Wildlife Refuge, Wisconsin. Twenty-one whooping cranes comprise the current (2003) Wisconsin – Florida migratory population. Eighteen additional whooping cranes are being raised at Necedah NWR this summer and trained to follow the ultra-light aircraft this fall to Chassahowitzka NWR.

With the 300 wild whooping cranes listed above, there is, by law, a requirement to maintain a captive flock of 100 birds. At present 199 cranes in captivity, making the total population 419 birds. Captive cranes are at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Maryland, International Crane Foundation, Wisconsin, Calgary Zoo, San Antonio Zoo and our own Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park.

WHOOPING CRANE EASTERN PARTNERSHIP


In the early 1990’s, the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership was formed with US Fish and Wildlife Service, Canadian Wildlife Service, International Crane Foundation, Operation Migration and other public and private organizations to establish a second experimental migratory flock of whooping cranes in eastern United States. Necedah NWR, Wisconsin was selected to raise the chicks that were supplied from the captive breeding stock from Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Maryland. During the summer, the chicks are trained to follow the ultra-light aircraft by costumed biologists. The cranes never come in contact with human faces nor hear human voices. In the fall when the cranes are ready to migrate Operation Migration leads the cranes on their first migratory journey to Florida, 1250 miles over seven states to Chassahowitzka NWR.

The trip takes 37 to 50 days. For details on the flight from Wisconsin and other related links log on to Whooping Cranes.

CHASSAHOWITZKA NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE


Chassahowitzka NWR is located on the west coast of Florida about 70 miles north of St. Petersburg, Fl. Chassahowitzka NWR was selected as the wintering site for the whooping cranes after surveying sites all the way around the Gulf of Mexico from Louisiana and up to the Atlantic coast to the Carolinas. Chassahowitzka is far enough from the Aransas NWR whooping crane population to insure the two populations remain separate.

Chassahowitzka is a vast coastal plain of salt marsh, savannah, and hard wood hammocks with shallow estuaries with abundant food sources especially blue crabs, other crustaceans, fish, insects, as well as vegetation needed to feed the cranes.

The whooping crane wintering site is located in a remote area of the refuge and consists of a natural marsh with an oyster shell reef added to create a sloping shoreline for the cranes to roost comfortably in water. The site is surrounded by an electric fence to ward off predators especially bobcats. The cranes are free to fly out of the pen site to forage, but are encouraged to come back to the safety of the pen to roost over night by supplemental feeding.