North America: Research in the Field > Annual Midwest Crane Count > History and Articles
History of Crane Count
The 1976 Columbia County Crane Survey
In 1976, the Crane Count was merely a survey in Columbia County in search of sandhill crane activity. To find what locations the cranes utilized, study their ecology, and later determine a better estimate of their population in the county. The initial survey involved the efforts of less than two hundred volunteers.
The Sandhill Crane Survey
The next couple of years were an effort to improve upon and expand the original survey by increasing involvement and covering a greater area. In 1978 the Count covered five Wisconsin counties -- Columbia, Sauk, Dane, Dodge, and Jefferson.
The Annual Wisconsin Sandhill Crane Survey
In 1981, massive organizational efforts on the part of ICF and the Wisconsin Wetlands Association expanded the Count into 34 counties. Procedures for holding the Count were standardized -- instead of taking place over a range of dates, the Count took place on one designated day and time. The hopes of expanding Crane Count were to enhance wetland protection (Wisconsin currently retains about half of its original wetlands) by promoting awareness, document areas where cranes were known to occur, and begin documenting the size of the crane population. Seven hundred and sixty volunteers contributed to the effort.
The Annual Wisconsin Sandhill Crane Count
In 1982, the Crane Count expanded to 43 Wisconsin counties, and covered the majority of the sandhill crane's range in the state at that time. Between its near statewide scope and now-established consistency, Crane Count became more valuable as a tool to assess the abundance and distribution of the sandhill cranes, and in the future, long-term trends. The number of volunteer participants more than doubled to 1,617.
In 1985, almost the entire state was covered, with 67 counties joining the effort. Over two thousand volunteers counted more than 6,000 cranes. Crane Count was presented at the 1985 Crane Workshop as a project involving public participation. As Crane Count became established, its focus was on research, education, and wetland conservation.
The Annual Midwest Sandhill Crane Count
In 1994, Crane Count expanded from a statewide venture into an Upper Midwest one, involving Minnesota and Michigan. Illinois followed in 1995, and Iowa in 1996. As the crane population steadily expands into neighboring states, Crane Count still allows ICF to monitor the abundance and distribution of the eastern population of sandhill cranes, and their dispersal. In 2000, a record total of over 13,500 sandhill cranes spread throughout portions of the five states was the result. Crane Count continues to monitor, expand, and evolve with more than 100 counties participating each year. Currently more than 2,500 volunteer counters participate each year.
The Annual Midwest Crane Count
2005 shows yet another growth and change within this complex research program organized by ICF. Due to promising efforts by the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP) in the reintroduction of whooping cranes back into Wisconsin, we must make the next progression in our research. The spring of 2005 may bring as many as 46 'wild' whooping cranes back to Wisconsin giving some of our volunteer crane counters the chance to seeing whooping cranes during the count. On this special, 30th annual count we have made the move to include the whooping cranes that now grace our Midwestern landscape once again.
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