Lou Kellenberger / Special to The News During one of the coldest winters on record 20 juvenile whooping cranes and several chilly pilots undertook an ultralight guided migration to Northwest Florida’s St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge from Necedah National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in central Wisconsin.

Successfully restoring a population of a migratory species is a huge challenge. There are now 85 migratory whooping cranes in the wild in eastern North America -- including the first whooping crane chick to hatch in the wild in Wisconsin in more than a century. Unfortunately, one crane from an earlier cohort was recently shot and killed in Indiana. The majestic species is the tallest in North America.

The migrating cranes left Necedah refuge on October 23, following Operation Migration’s four ultralight aircraft. The bird’s migration ended in San Marcos de Apalache State Park in St. Marks, Fl on Jan. 13 when 10 young birds arrived with the ultralight at their winter home.

A new generation of whooping cranes are led by ultralight on their first migration. Unaided, the cranes will make the return migration to the Upper Midwest in the spring.
Lou Kellenberger / Special to The News "Last year's chicks did not come back to us,” said Robin Will, Supervisory Refuge Ranger at St. Marks. "They probably went to Paynes Prairie near Gainesville Florida, and we’ve heard that one was spotted in Mississippi.”

The chicks were tagged so the rangers got reports from their antenna as the migrating yearlings flew above – and beyond St. Marks – to their new roosts.

“They probably joined other flocks that went elsewhere so that’s good news but we had so looked forward to seeing them again!”

The birds are monitored during the winter in Florida by WCEP project staff. ICF and Service biologists continue to monitor the birds while they are in their summer locations.

“They flew majestically over the St. Marks River on a frosty morning, to the delight of a small crowd of 500 viewers,” said Refuge volunteer Christine Barnes. “The cranes were in an enclosed pen in a secluded area of the refuge prior to release. They tolerated a vet check to make sure that they were sound and healthy following the long migration. They are young birds, after all, and 89 days in transit is a lot of stress on their bodies.”

Each fall, pilots from Operation Migration (OM), a WCEP founding partner, leads a new generation of whooping cranes behind their ultralight aircraft to wintering grounds in Florida. Unaided, the cranes will make the return migration to the Upper Midwest in the spring.

There are less than 400 birds total existing in the wild, though a larger migration than the Southeastern migration takes place west of the Mississippi to Texas each year.

The Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP), an international coalition of public and private groups conducting this aided migration project, is now in its ninth year, in an effort to reintroduce this endangered species in eastern North America.

“This is the second time we have led birds through this part of Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia, and I am still amazed at the support this project generates,” said Joe Duff, C.E.O, Operation Migration, Inc.

“Without help from land-owners who allow us to use their property or the airport managers who provide hangar space for our flimsy aircraft this project could not be done. We are grateful to all the people who provide pumpkins for the birds, showers for the crew members or dinners. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.”

The ultra-led flock from Necedah NWR passed through Wisconsin, Illinois, Kentucky, and then Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia to reach their final destinations in Florida.

Because the ability to fly with the birds is entirely weather dependent, the duration of the migration is unknown when it begins in the fall. To help speed the migration and improve safety for the birds and the pilots, a new route was developed last year that took the team around the Appalachian Mountains, rather than over them.

Were they to fly on their own, without ultralights and other necessary human intervention, the migration would take only 2-3 weeks, not four months.

In addition to the 20 ultralight-led birds, biologists from the International Crane Foundation (ICF) and the Service reared nine whooping cranes at Necedah NWR. The birds were released in the company of older cranes from whom the young birds will learn the migration route. This is the fifth year WCEP has used this Direct Autumn Release method.

Chicks are raised under a strict isolation protocol and to ensure the birds remain wild, handlers adhere to a notalking rule and wear costumes designed to mask the human form.

Most of the reintroduced whooping cranes spend the summer in central Wisconsin, where they use areas on the Necedah NWR, as well as various state and private lands.

Reintroduced whooping cranes have also spent time in Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan and other upper Midwest states.

The Whooping Crane Recovery Team has established a target number for this reintroduction. Once there are at least 125 individuals, including 25 breeding pairs, migrating in this eastern corridor the population could be considered self sustaining.

A non-migrating flock of about 30 birds lives year-round in central Florida. The remaining 150 whooping cranes are in captivity in zoos and breeding facilities around North America.

Despite the incredible desire to see such rare and magnificent birds, WCEP asks anyone who encounters a whooping crane in the wild to please give them the respect and distance they need. Never approach birds on foot within 600 feet; try to remain in your vehicle; do not approach in a vehicle within 600 feet or, if on a public road, within 300 feet. Also, please remain concealed and do not speak loudly enough that the birds can hear you. Finally, do not trespass on private property in an attempt to view whooping cranes.

More than 60 percent of the project’s estimated $1.6 million annual budget comes from private sources in the form of grants, public donations and corporate sponsorship.