Nesting Update, June 11, 2007
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Whooper
Reintroduction Updates
Current Trip:
Summer 2007: Monitoring the
Whooping Cranes
Entry June 11
Nesting Update, June 11,
2007
This weekend ICF Aviculturists and Richard Urbanek, USFWS placed an egg
from ICF in the nest of Whooping Crane pair #3-03 and #17-03 at the
Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. Numbers 3-03 and 17-03 are full
siblings--brother and sister. To help ensure genetic diversity among
the reintroduced wild flock, the pair’s egg was removed and
replaced
with a fertile, incubated egg from ICF.
Whooping
crane chicks produced from full sibling pairs are likely to show low
survivability due to genetic mutations--if they do survive to breeding
age they are unlikely to breed successfully. Maximizing the variety of
genes released in this new population increases the chances for
survival, since some genes are better adapted to certain environmental
factors than others.
When the biologists approached the nest
at the Necedah NWR to make the egg swap, the male Whooping Crane was
sitting on the nest. Both cranes flushed from the area, and ICF staff
quickly made the egg switch. The egg from the wild was nonviable. After
several hours had passed and the adults hadn’t returned to
the nest,
the captive-produced egg, which was due to hatch very soon, was removed
and a plaster, “dummy” egg was placed in the nest
for if/when the
adults returned. The egg from ICF was brought back to ICF, where the
chick will become part of the DAR (Direct Autumn Release) project,
which was the original intention for that chick.
The
production of eggs at the captive breeding centers (ICF, Patuxent
Wildlife Research Center, Calgary Zoo, San Antonio Zoo, and Audubon
Species Survival Center) has been very high this year. The Whooping
Crane Eastern Partnership is expecting 22-24 chicks for the ultralight
release method and 10-11 chicks for DAR, but unfortunately, it
doesn’t
look like we’ll have any wild-hatched chicks this year.
Update by Joan Garland, ICF Acting Director of Education. Report
provided by Richard Urbanek and Tom Stehn, USFWS.
This email is generated by the International Crane Foundation located
at E11376 Shady Lane Road, Baraboo, WI. 53913. Visit our website
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