Meet the New 2006 Whooping Crane Chicks!
Hatch-year 2006 of the Eastern Flock
Crane # 601

Date Hatched

May 5 , 2006

Gender

Male

Date of Photo: May 13, 2006

Egg Source: ICF

Permanent Leg Bands

Weight 9/06/06: 6.3 kg
R/G
(left)
 
 
R/G/W 
(right) 
 
 
 
  • Read about the naming system, hatch place in Maryland, release site in Wisconsin, over-wintering site in Florida, and leg-band codes.

Personality and History

Migration Training: He was going outside for walks with the other 4 oldest chicks at 5 days of age. They get along very well. He came to Wisconsin for flight school on June 27 in cohort one, the 8 oldest chicks. By July 20, he was starting to fly. He immediately got airborne behind the trike and flew the entire distance of the runway!

By August 15 he was flying up to 10 minutes in large circles over a big pool at the refuge. Pilot Chris says, "We do large looping circuits back to the pen site so birds can land if they are getting tired. After landing, we have been finding that the birds recover very quickly and are ready for more."

Chicks #601 and #602 are the oldest, and they seem to be what most older siblings should be: good role models for their other flockmates. "These two always seem to do what they need to and seldom get into any mischief, said Marie.

History
First Migration South: Chick #601 left Wisconsin for his first migration on October 5th, 2006. He flew the whole first leg of the journey and landed safely at Stopover #1! Read day-by-day news about the flock's migration to see what happens.

Oct. 14: To entertain the birds, the team gave them some corn cobs. "After grabbing hold of one cob, something about it must have freaked out #601," said Marie. "He dropped the cob, jumped back and ran away from it as it if it had bit him!"

Click to enlarge.

Photo Bev Paulan, Operation Migration

Dec. 3: After flying well with the ultralight all this time, 601 dropped out today. He (and 2 other birds) had to be boxed and driven to the next stop at Gordon County, Georgia. (Click onthe photo for more details.)

Jan. 12, Moving Day: #601 made it almost half way on the first moving day before he (with some others) had a rest stop, another try, and still landed short in Citrus County—still 10 miles from the Chass pen. They were too tired to try again, so they spent the night in a travel pen with others that had been crated and brought to the same site. The next morning in calm air and clear skies, #601 and the other 11 chicks who hadn't cooperated yesterday took off with Joe's plane. Their final flight with the ultralight lasted 18 minutes. They landed at their final winter home at "Chass," where six flockmates had arrived the day before. Migration complete!

Feb. 2, 2006: Crane 601 died when violent storms moved through central Florida during the night, killing all 17 chicks in the pen at Chass. Only #615 somehow managed to escape.

 

Last updated: 2/03/07

Back to "Meet the Flock 2006"


Journey North is pleased to feature this educational adventure made possible by the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP).