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Tracking the Whooping Cranes, April 14, 2008
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Whooper
Reintroduction Updates
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| Photo by Anna Fasoli |
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| Photo by Anna Fasoli |
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| Photo by Anna Fasoli |
Current Trip:
Spring 2008 Eastern Whooping
Crane Migration
Entry April 17
Tracking the Whooping
Cranes, April 14, 2008
Number 27-07 is getting closer and closer to Necedah National Wildlife
Refuge. On April 8, tracking intern Eva Szyskoski picked up the signal
of 27-07, who had separated from her group (6-07 12-07 and 13-07) only
a few days earlier. On this day, 27-07 was flying NW through the
western edge of Georgia. She was headed straight for me at my location
in Bledsoe County, TN, where I was monitoring 3-07. Number 3-07 had
separated from his group two weeks earlier (his group consisted of
7-07, 10-07 and 22-07, in addition to 14-07 who was killed by a
predator, and 9-07 who continued migration alone and was the first to
make it to Wisconsin). I left 3-07 around 4:00 pm and joined Eva in the
chase of 27-07 as the bird crossed over the Cumberland Plateau. We
"tag-teamed" her, tracking her until she landed for roost in Trousdale
County, TN. Through a game of "rock-paper-scissors," we decided that
Eva would head back south (no one likes to back track!) to monitor
3-07, and I would stay on 27-07.
The
next morning, April 9, 27-07 took off just after 7:00 am, and headed
WNW under mostly cloudy skies and isolated showers. These are not the
usual weather conditions that cranes migrate in-but she seemed
persistent to continue north. Approximately 30 miles into her journey,
she encountered a large rain storm, and tried to go around it by
heading due west. It was too much, and she dropped out in Robertson
County, TN, less than 10 miles from the Kentucky/Tennessee border,
where she spent the remainder of the day.
Early the next
morning, on April 10, she took off again and headed NW through partly
cloudy skies with a strong tail wind. After crossing into Indiana
around 11:00 am, she encountered a very large band of thunderstorms
that eventually grounded her at 12:15 pm, after 180 miles. She landed
in an extremely flooded area of Indiana, along the Wabash River. I
encountered numerous "road closed" signs trying to get to her due to
the high water, but eventually found her in a large flooded corn field.
She is in an ideal location that is very isolated due to the flood
waters, which provides her with ideal roosting conditions. Numbers
6-07, 12-07, and 13-07 are also in Indiana along the Wabash River.
Just
a short drive away from 27-07 are the five birds that I originally
started out tracking from Florida, numbers 16-07, 17-07, 21-07, 24-07,
and 26-07. After spending five days in Coffee County, TN, they migrated
northward while I was checking on the group of birds in Bledsoe County,
TN. They made it to southern Indiana on March 31, and have remained at
that location ever since.
In addition to these birds, the
three birds that I was formerly monitoring in Bledsoe County (departed
this location April 8), numbers 7-07, 10-07, and 22-07, are in McHenry
County, Illinois. Number 33-07’s signal was last picked up
near
Chicago, IL. Eva is still with 3-07 who is currently in Macon County,
TN.
All of these birds will likely wait for winds to change in
their favor, and will hopefully make it to Wisconsin in the next few
days.
Update by Anna Fasoli, ICF Tracking Crew Chief.
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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