Whooping Crane Conservation Association

The world’s number of whooping cranes are steadily on the rise, according to biologists at Wood Buffalo National Park.

There are now an estimated 300 cranes in the flock, which is up from 16 in the 1950s.

Read the full story on the CBC News Website

Record number of Whooping Crane nests in Wood Buffalo National Park and surrounding area. Recent surveys conducted by the Canadian Wildlife Service on the whooping crane breeding grounds have revealed 82 nesting pairs.

Read the full story on the Northern Journal website

The Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership has announced that the first chick of 2014 has hatched at the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. More nests are due to hatch in the upcoming days and weeks.

Read the full story at The Journal Times.

The Whooping Crane Conservation Association was pleased to be one of the funding agencies responsible for a Conservation Easement at Falcon Point Ranch to preserve “Critical Habitat” for wintering whooping cranes. For a more detailed article about the project go to the NRCS Website

George Archibald and Tom Stehn receive  Jerome J. Pratt – Whooping Crane Conservation Awards
On April 17, 2012, at the North American Crane Workshop, WCCA Trustee Walt Sturgeon presented both George Archibald and Tom Stehn with Jerome J. Pratt Whooping Crane Awards. The award is a lifetime achievement award given to an individual or organization who, through exceptional achievement and dedicated service, have contributed significantly to the conservation and/or collective knowledge of the whooping crane.

George Archibald

George Archibald is the award-winning co-founder of the International Crane Foundation. George’s vision was to protect the world’s crane species from extinction by establishing a captive breeding center. Under George’s direction, the Crane Foundation has grown from humble beginnings into an internationally known power house of crane research. He has collaborated with colleagues throughout the world to promote crane conservation and wetland preservation. Undeterred by political boundaries and current politics, George has used the bond shared by numerous peoples that cranes are sacred and deserve protection. George’s involvement with whooping cranes began with an imprinted female named Tex, who through artificial insemination was able to pass on her genes through her offspring. George has been a member of the Whooping Crane Recovery Team almost since its inception. His leadership at the Crane Foundation and his willingness to try alternate rearing and reintroduction techniques have proved to be beneficial to the captive breeding program and in bringing whooping cranes back to eastern North America.

Thomas V. Stehn

Since 1982, Thomas V. Stehn has monitored the whooping crane population wintering at and near the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. Tom studied erosion of crane habitat along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway which led to a large erosion control abatement project that was installed by the Army Corps of Engineers, US Fish and Wildlife Service and volunteers. This single project is responsible for the protection of hundreds of acres of Critical Habitat for the whooping crane. He developed an aerial census technique that provided annual population figures for the Aransas/Wood Buffalo population of whooping cranes. This one of a kind dataset has been instrumental in documenting overwinter mortality and is used by researchers around the globe to track the population. Tom became the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Whooping Crane Coordinator and co-chairman of the International Whooping Crane Recovery Team in 1998. As coordinator he has been deeply involved with all whooping crane issues, ranging from power line collisions to captive breeding. He is one of the authors of the International Recovery Plan for the Whooping Crane (2007). Tom retired in September, 2011, after 32 years of service with the Federal Government.

The Whooping Crane Conservation Association congratulates both George and Tom for their contributions on behalf of whooping cranes.

Spring 2014 – WCCA Newsletter

LAFAYETTE — Two eggs sitting on a nest of marsh grass and sticks in a crawfish pond offer a bit of hope in a project to bring back the endangered whooping crane to south Louisiana.

Read the full story on The Advocate website

In recognition of his many achievements on behalf of whooping cranes and their recovery, an HONOR AWARD was presented to MARTIN J. FOLK on the 28th day of March, 2014, at Davenport, Florida.

The Award Citation Reads: “As Biological Field Coordinator for the Non-Migratory Whooping Crane Project, Marty Folk has been involved in all aspects of the Florida whooping crane release. He has selected release sites, established release pens, released birds and monitored the cranes after release. Marty has been instrumental in developing new and innovative capture techniques and handling protocols for the birds he has captured. He has also developed the use of videography for remote monitoring of nests to determine nesting behavior and egg and chick mortality factors. Marty is a prolific writer and has contributed numerous papers on the non-migratory whoopers including capture techniques, molt patterns, behavior, disease and mortality. Marty has also shared his knowledge as a member of the Whooping Crane Recovery Team and has contributed to the development of the International Whooping Crane Recovery Plan. Currently Marty is the editor of the Whooping Crane Conservation Association newsletter Grus Americana.”

The Whooping Crane Conservation Association was very pleased to present Marty Folk with the HONOR AWARD. The award is given on an infrequent basis to an individual or organization who through exceptional achievement and dedication, has contributed significantly to the conservation and/or collective knowledge of the Whooping Crane. Friends and colleagues wish Marty well in his retirement from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Whooping Crane population tops 300

The Aransas/Wood Buffalo Population of whooping cranes has reached a milestone with over 300 individuals accounted for during the 2013/14 winter. Recent counts by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimate the population to be approximately 304 individuals including 39 juveniles. This population of whooping cranes is cyclic and fluctuates on an approximate 10 year cycle. The 39 young along with the population increase indicates that the flock is into a growth phase. Hopefully habitat conditions on the breeding grounds will be good in 2014 to allow for continued expansion of the population.

The full report and additional updates can be found on the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge WebPage

Whooping Crane telemetry video

The capture and banding of a whooping crane at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge:

This news article summarizes the 2013 breeding season in Wood Buffalo National Park.